


Always Been You

by ThoughtsInMyMind



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Teachers, American Football, Angst with a Happy Ending, As you wish, Best Friends, Declarations Of Love, Drunken Confessions, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Football, Friendzone, Happily Ever After, Happy Ending, Hopeless Romantic, Humor, Idiots in Love, Jealousy, Kissing, Kissing in the Rain, Love Confessions, Marriage Proposal, Mistletoe, New Year's Kiss, Romantic Comedy, Romantic Fluff, Romantic Friendship, Romantic Gestures, The Princess Bride References, True Love, True Love's Kiss, book nerds
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-22
Updated: 2020-08-04
Packaged: 2021-03-05 06:47:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 37,420
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25450108
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThoughtsInMyMind/pseuds/ThoughtsInMyMind
Summary: A hopeless romantic Rey is tired of kissing frogs and decides to find the man that will give her the perfect 'true love's kiss'..."To be kissed like that. Rey had always wanted to know how it felt. The feeling of being swept off your feet, tasting the sweet lips of your one true love, seeing and feeling the sparks fly with an electric jolt that rushes through your body. To be kissed like that? Why, Rey would immediately marry the man that gave her that feeling."
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 40
Kudos: 89





	1. Never Been Kissed

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: I do not own Star Wars, these characters, or their universe. (Modern AU/OOC)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Back with another one! Inspiration came from watching The Princess Bride one time and I was thinking about writing a 'kiss' centered one-shot, but it turned into a multi-chap lol I believe it's only 11 chapters, but it's kind of quirky and fun. Hopeless romantic Rey, soft boy Ben, and the ever so lively Rose are the main characters. Hope you like it!
> 
> P.S. There will be a TON of Princess Bride easter eggs if you're a fan of it (but no, this story isn't a princess bride au).

**  
**

**Moodboard created by[beybex](https://archiveofourown.org/users/beybex)**

* * *

**_I. ~.Never Been Kissed.~_ **

" _There have been five great kisses since 1642 B.C. when Saul and Delilah Korn's inadvertent discovery swept across Western civilization. (Before then couples hooked thumbs.) And the precise rating of kisses is a terribly difficult thing, often leading to great controversy, because although everyone agrees with the formula of affection times purity times intensity times duration, no one has ever been completely satisfied with how much weight each element should receive. But on any system, there are five that everyone agrees deserve full marks._

_Well, this one left them all behind…"_

She closed the pages of her favorite novel and blissfully sighed while pressing the cover against her chest close to her heart. My goodness, to be kissed like that. Rey had always wanted to know how it felt. The feeling of being swept off your feet, tasting the sweet lips of your one true love, seeing and feeling the sparks fly with an electric jolt that rushes through your body. To be kissed like that? Why, Rey would immediately marry the man that gave her that feeling.

It was a minimum day at Corellia High School. While the students were dismissed by noon, the faculty stayed behind to catch up on grading projects and what not before the students returned from the Thanksgiving holiday. Rey Niima, the 11th grade English Literature teacher, was taking a break from reading student reports on the rise and fall of literature's greatest heroes. While she taught a diverse curriculum, her favorite works to dissect had always been romance (if it weren't already obvious). In her spare time Rey - the true bibliophile she was - always carried around a couple of books in her messenger bag, sneaking a few minutes of reading her favorite stories in between breaks.

Her love life wasn't nearly as grand as the epics she read in her novels. Nope, she didn't live in a fairytale. There were no knights in shining armors or frog princes, no wealthy suitor who looked past their social statuses, millionaires who threw parties to grace her presence, or a man losing his eyesight in a fire to be with her. None of that. She didn't have the best luck in relationships, but frankly these novels of hers kept her hopeless romantic heart beating. She read fairytales in lieu of her own happily ever after. And until she found hers, she lived vicariously through the lives of Jane Eyre, Daisy Buchanan, Elizabeth Bennet and of course her favorite little farm girl, Buttercup.

"Hey girl, are you almost done grading your papers?"

Rey's fellow colleague and best friend Rose Tico walked into her classroom and slumped at a nearby desk.

"Taking a break right now," she said and flashed the book in her hands up for her friend to see.

"You're taking a break to read a book? Have you ever head of television?"

"Well books are like TV to me. Except I see it in my head. Blame the day job I'm an English lit teacher," Rey giggled.

"How does going from reading papers to reading a book mean taking a break?" Rose laughed. "It's all the same, you're still reading!"

"Yes, well I love my students, but I love this book more," Rey replied.

"Girl haven't you read that book like a million times?" she speculated.

"I haven't read it a million times Rose. That's not possible."

Logically, it wasn't. Rey was 27 years old. Even if she started reading this book at five years old, she wouldn't even be close to a million reads. But Rose had a point…

"Well you've read it enough to practically memorize it. And don't even lie that you haven't memorized the thing cover to cover!"

"Augh, it's just a beautiful story, Rose!" Rey gushed.

"You see and this is why you're single," her friend pointed out. "You're too consumed with the romance of fictional characters than the romance of your own life."

"Well they make me happy, more than any of my last boyfriends have ever made me," she pointed out.

"I guess," Rose said. "But come on, if you're not going to do any more grading, let's call it a day and grab some drinks at my place."

Rose stood up and walked to the bookshelf hugging the wall opposite the door, playing with the several knick-knacks Rey decorated her classroom with.

"Are you done grading your papers?" she asked her friend.

"Of course not," Rose said. "I never even started."

"Then what have you been doing for the past 3 hours?"

"I was flash freezing a banana in the chem lab to make chunks for my cereal. But then I realized I wanted to drink alcohol, so I just dismissed my papers altogether and came to you," Rose happily shared.

"Rose, you can't use your lab to make food all the rime," Rey rolled her eyes, closing her book and gathering her things.

"Hey look, I love my job and I love chemistry," Rose said. "But I also love food and if I can use a Bunsen burner to roast marshmallows on a cold rainy morning, I will do so without any retort from you or my students," she bragged.

"I swear one of these days you'll start a lab fire and not from a chemical accident but from like burnt chicken or something," the two women laughed.

When Rey finally agreed to head over to Rose's, her friend went down the hall to her classroom to lock up and grab her things. Rey tidied up her desk and slipped the stack of reports in her messenger bag as well, opting to read the rest at home over the long weekend. She was wiping down her whiteboard when there came a knock on her door.

"Ben, hey!" Rey greeted her other friend and fellow colleague.

"Hey Rey," he smiled brightly at her.

Ben was a new hire two years ago. He came from another school district to take over the head coaching position of the school's football team. By the looks of his physique, it was no secret that Ben played some college ball because he couldn't hide those muscles under his windbreaker even if he tried.

Rey enjoyed hanging out with Ben. He was a very sweet and funny guy. They became instant friends and in the two short years best of friends. He had a smile that would light up the room, at least for Rey she thought his smile was bright. He always had a smile ready for her when she saw him.

This high school was filled with cliques – even in the faculty level. Rey, Rose and Ben stuck together because they were the only teachers at that school who didn't brown nose the principal, act like they were in the popular crowd, or greedily abuse the funding for their curriculums (although Rose may have once or twice expensed a bag of marshmallows for her personal use). They were merely just teachers who loved their jobs and came to work just like everyone else.

"I saw your light was still on, so I came over," he said. "What are you still doing here?"

"I should be asking you the same thing," she said back. "I didn't know gym teachers had to grade papers," she teased.

Ben chuckled at her remark.

"Grade papers, no. But the varsity team is one game away from making it to the playoffs so we're putting in some extra practice before the break."

"Have I ever told you I admire your dedication?" she smiled sweetly at him.

That smile. It could move mountains. Ben Solo wasn't the most outgoing person, he wasn't the first person you'd think of to be a romantic. But when he met Rey, his whole world brightened up. The usually introverted guy he was, he was a changed man when he started at Corellia High because he went out with Rey and Rose whenever he was invited to do things. For a man who got dumped by his last 3 girlfriends for not showing enough affection, Ben wrote sonnets in his mind whenever Rey spoke to him. He was smitten over his colleague, but she had put him in the friendzone the first day they met. Now he's one of her best friends and doesn't think he'll ever get the chance to be something more with her. But a man could still dream.

"Maybe once or twice," he kidded, trying to keep a blush from forming.

"Well you're a hard worker. Those boys on varsity are lucky to have you as their coach," she pointed out.

"I think you mean your students are lucky to have you," he said leaning against the door frame. "I can't tell you how many times they've talked about their favorite teacher. And I hear your name more than my own," he laughed.

"Oh, well… I don't have a retort for that," she giggled. "Are you heading home?"

"I've got to give some of the boys rides home since we went a bit past our practice time. There are no more late buses for them to take. It's the least I could do."

"That's very sweet of you," Rey smiled.

Before he could give himself a chance to blush, he needed to change the subject.

"What do you have going on tonight?"

"Rose wants to drink at her place."

"Hmm… take smelly teenagers home or grab a drink with a girl friend? Yeah, you win this round, Niima," he joked.

"Thanks, Solo," she giggled.

"I'll be dropping by the grocery store on my way home. Got to pick up some stuff for my mom for Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow. Let me know if you need anything and I'll swing by your apartment tonight."

That was Ben, always considerate and eager to help her out. He was the nicest person she's ever met.

"Thanks, Ben. I think I'm good."

"Alright, have a good one, Rey! And Happy Thanksgiving!"

~.~.~.~

Rose was pleased that Rey agreed to come over and have some much needed girl time. They hadn't lounged around together since the school year started and they wanted to destress before the craziness of the Christmas season began.

Rose popped open a bottle of wine and poured a glass for her and Rey. When she brought the drinks to the living room, she found her book nerd friend curled up in the corner of her sectional couch continuing to read her book.

"Augh, girl. It's after hours and officially Thanksgiving break. No more work!"

"This isn't work, this is just a hobby read," Rey defended.

"You're still reading. Still work. Put it away!"

She handed Rey her wine and sipped half her glass even before taking a seat beside her.

"But this is a good part! Westley was just about to-"

"Unless Westley is going to show up at my door and whisk me off into the sunset with his black stallion then I don't care."

"Technically, it's a white horse-"

"I don't care, sweetie," Rose said before sipping her wine again.

"Fine, fine. I'll put it away," Rey said dejectedly and placed it on the table before grabbing her glass.

After polishing her first round and refilling her glass, Rose decided to give her friend a break.

"What is it that you love so much about that book, anyway? Seriously…"

For someone who loved Netflix, Rey was excited that her TV loving friend asked about her favorite novel. She jumped on that conversation quick.

"I don't know, Rose. Didn't you dream of a fairytale love story when you were a little girl? The struggle, the oppression, the strife… then when all hope is lost true love wins and you finally get to have that moment where you and your prince share a kiss?" Rey daydreamed.

"I mean I watched Disney movies and wanted to be like Cinderella and get married to a prince but that's all," her friend shared.

"It's just… there's something so grand about _The Princess Bride_ that I just wish to find my Westley someday. And I don't think I need to say that this book has one of the best kisses in the history of literature," Rey said as if it were the most obvious fact.

"Okay but have you seen or read _The_ _Notebook_?" Rose shared. "You know how Ryan Gosling looks like right?"

"Yes, I have and yes that's a great story too. But this… the way their kiss is described as the greatest kiss in history. Have you ever felt that?" Rey said giddily.

"You mean been kissed? Of course I have," Rose said apparently.

"No, I mean like really been kissed?"

"Yes, Rey. I've really been kissed," Rose chuckled at her. "I have a husband remember?"

"Yes, I do. And I think it's so romantic that you and Ezra can have a lover's reunion kiss every time he comes back from deployment. It's so beautiful!"

"Lover's reunion kiss? Is that even a thing?"

"Yes of course it is!"

"I guess," Rose giggled. "What's your point?"

"My point is, Rose…" Rey nervously swished her wine around in her glass. "I don't think I've ever been kissed that way."

Rose looked at her stupidly.

"What are you talking about? You've had relationships before. Long term ones. Didn't you love your boyfriends?" she pointed out.

Rey placed her glass down and tucked her legs beneath her, getting a bit more comfortable.

"I guess. At least at the time I did, sure. But I've never felt that spark, you know? The one that lights up the inner flame inside you because it's pure love. Maybe for lust if anything. And the 'love' I felt for my ex-boyfriends wasn't the one true love I thought."

"Rey sweetie," Rose sighed. "You've been kissed before. I've seen you light up with your ex-boyfriend, Cal. He was a great guy. You can't possibly tell me you didn't feel a single spark or even a flame for him?"

"Honestly Rose... Never. Not like this."

Rey picked up the book and flipped to a bookmarked page. She read Rose the description of Buttercup and Westley's kiss and happily sighed.

Her friend couldn't help it, she let out a small giggle.

"What, are you going to tell me next that you're a virgin because you've never made love?" she teased.

"Har har, Rose," Rey rolled her eyes at her friend.

"Oh sweetie, you've romanticized this notion of a true love's kiss so much it's almost going to be impossible for you to find 'the one'. You know that, right?"

"He's out there I know it," Rey wanted to believe.

"Well you're going to be searching for quite a while. Why not at least settle for 'the one right now'?"

"Well, maybe the next one will be it? Maybe I'm ready to be in a real relationship this time and not just pointless flings?"

"Oh my god, yes! I've been waiting all year for you to get back in the dating game," Rose was excited.

Rey's last relationship was a year ago and while the breakup was amicable, she didn't immediately try to meet another man. It puzzled Rose because Rey was all about wanting to fall in love, yet her best friend didn't mind being single for a while.

"I don't really know if I want to jump into the 'dating game'," Rey said of the phrase.

"You can't find your one true love if you don't put yourself out there, babe."

"I just don't want to play the dating game though. No more flings, remember?"

"Sometimes flings can turn into relationships," Rose pointed.

"Don't know if I'd want to be in that kind of relationship though."

"Okay then why don't you go out with someone and just kiss him first to see if there's at least mutual attraction before you start talking about 'the one'?" her friend suggested.

Rey thought for a moment.

"You know in my undergrad one of my lit professors talked about how sometimes your surroundings can enhance the intensity and emotions around you and can make a kiss feel even more regal."

"What are you saying, you're going to set the stage for a perfect kiss?" Rose quipped a brow at her friend.

Rey's eyes widened.

"That's exactly what I'm going to do!"

Not enough wine could help Rose figure out her friend's gibberish.

"Okay, explain…"

"Rose, there are so many 'perfect kiss' moments you can have. What if I just need to be in the right moment with a guy to feel that spark of true love's kiss?"

Rose took a long sip of her wine. She really thought her best friend was losing it. But she played along for Rey's sake.

"And what exactly are perfect moments? You know besides a wedding?" she teased.

"I don't know, like kissing in the rain, kissing at sunset, under the mistletoe or even at midnight on New Year's Eve. Stuff like that."

"Oh, like the cute moment at the end of _She's All That_ when they kissed in the backyard after prom?" Rose said dreamily of that fun teen movie she watched back in the day.

"Definitely," Rey agreed. "She kissed him under the moonlight with the twinkling lights. If that's not romance, I don't know what is."

"I do love me some Freddie Prinze Jr.," Rose giggled. "God, I love the song too!"

Rey nodded in agreement. "I want my perfect kiss moment just like that."

"You can't expect to automatically fall in love with someone just like that do you?"

Rey thought about it for a moment. She really thought about what Rose was saying about dating and relationships.

"I guess not. But like you said, maybe if I feel a spark then I can go from there."

"Alright."

Rey wasn't really sure if she was ready, but she was hoping to find her 'Westley'. And if it meant putting her heart on her sleeve again, then she'd take the chance.

"Then it's settled, Rose. I'm going back in the dating game."

"Oh hell yeah. I'll drink to that!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Preview of next chapter: Just Another Friday
> 
> "Why don't you just talk to her already?"
> 
> "There's nothing to talk about. We're just friends."
> 
> "It's just your way of saying she put you in the friendzone... You're Rey's boyfriend without benefits."
> 
> "No, I'm not," Ben scoffed. He definitely was.


	2. Just Another Friday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Want to make a quick note... since Ben's a football coach, he's going to talk football jargon. It's not that important to the main story though so don't be confused if you don't understand it. I grew up on football (and baseball) so it was easy to write but like I said, not important to the main plot!

* * *

_**II. ~.Just Another Friday.~** _

"Let's go Kniiights!"

_Clap, clap, clap, clap, clap!_

It was a lively pep rally the Friday after the Thanksgiving holiday. The Corellia Knights varsity football team was being cheered on by the entire school. They were one game away from their first ever ballot into the Division II playoffs in their school district. When Ben joined as the head coach a year prior, these boys were wishing for a miracle. In just two seasons he turned the team around making their school serious contenders for the sport. That night was their last football game of the regular season and they needed to win to advance to the quarter finals.

Rey had her students sit next to Rose's class of course and both ladies cheered loudly for their best friend and varsity coach, Ben, when the principal recognized his hard work for the team. Ben being the tall, brooding, bashful man he was never got used to receiving this type of recognition and was fighting every fiber in his being not to go red in embarrassment in front of the crowd of teenagers and faculty members. When the principal introduced each player, he was happily relieved of the spotlight. However, the boys on the team surprised Ben and his assistant coach Dopheld Mitaka with a 'thank you' gift of letterman jackets of their own to wear just like the students.

Once again, the spotlight was on him but at least he got to share it with Mitaka. He hoped more people were looking at the guy next to him since his colleague was a more sociable person. Amid the noise from the crowd, he could distinctly hear his two friends whistling and cheering his name. He scanned the bleachers and found Rey and Rose grinning excitedly at him. Rey even waved and… was that a wink? He bit so hard inside his cheek that he felt blood, but he dared not to turn a shade of pink in front of everyone, especially Rey.

The football game that evening wasn't even a close competition. Both teams fought extremely hard, but in the end the Corellia Knights obliterated the Mustafar Wolves and rightfully earned their spot in the playoffs. With permission from their parents, Ben and Mitaka took the team out for a celebratory pizza dinner after the game. Rey and Rose tagged along, always showing their support for their best friend.

"You know in the five years I've worked at that school I've never heard that stadium roar so loud," Rose said. "The vibrations from the noise on the bleachers were something!"

"Oh yeah," Rey nodded in agreement. "There was so much school spirit tonight. It's pretty cool sometimes to see it in real life like in the movies."

"That's because we actually have a winning team, thanks to Ben and Mitaka."

"Very true."

"They've literally turned the team around and brought the school together, I tell you," Rose said. "I'm so glad though. Makes school much more interesting."

"We're there to teach kids, Rose. It's not a reality show," Rey joked.

"It really should be!" Rose said. "At least document the football team. They deserve the spotlight."

"They've really worked hard that's for sure," she had to agree.

Rey glanced over to where Ben was sitting with a couple of parents and Mitaka, most likely talking about the highlights of that night's game. He managed to steal a glance with her, and she smiled tenderly, waving at him.

When she waved at him at the pep rally, Ben almost lost his cool and blushed in front of the whole school. Again tonight, her tiny gesture sent a jolt of energy through his already adrenaline high body from the game. He curtly waved back and averted his attention to his slice of pizza, hoping no one would notice the tiny redness on his ears and neck this time.

"Hey man, you alright?" Mitaka asked him. He suddenly looked flushed.

"Yeah," Ben tried to dismiss. "Still on a high from tonight's win."

He saved face by briefly taking a sip of his root beer.

"Nice job by the way on the fake punt third quarter. You really got everyone psyched," he praised his colleague.

"Hey man, I was only following your lead. You saw that they were putting in 6 DB's. They were going to blitz us, so I just called an audible with your foresight."

"Exactly, it was a great call. You deserve credit for that."

"Jesus, Solo," Mitaka laughed. "Just take a compliment already!"

"Let's just agree that it was a team effort," he heartily chucked his friend's shoulder.

Sometime later when it was just him and Mitaka and most of the team left with their parents, Ben stole a glance at Rey while she chatted with Rose, this time watching her even when she wasn't glimpsing back. Mitaka of course noticed. Ben wasn't actually being subtle.

"Why don't you just talk to her already? Tell her the truth," he blurted.

"What are you talking about?" Ben asked.

"I don't know, the fact that you're so in love with her?" Mitaka smirked.

Other than Rey and Rose being his two best friends, Mitaka was the only guy around that he talked to about things he couldn't with them. Especially his unhealthy and longstanding crush on his best friend. Mitaka's words, not Ben's.

"No, I'm not."

"Right. My mistake. I guess stealing glances at a pretty girl doesn't mean anything other than creepy," his colleague chortled.

Ben rolled his eyes at Mitaka.

"But seriously, man. Have you talked to her yet?"

"There's nothing to talk about. We're just friends."

"Uhuh, and my wife and I are the king and queen of Florin," Mitaka joked.

"Honestly, man. I don't have that big of a crush on her anymore," Ben shared. "That was a long time ago."

Yet his colleague was not convinced.

"So why are you always around her?" he probed.

"Because we're friends. Best friends. Is that a crime?" Ben tried to defend himself.

"It is if it's just your way of saying she put you in the friendzone," Mitaka said before sipping his drink. "That does put a damper on your relationship."

"You know, I thought being friends with my assistant coach would be a good thing but keep this up and we'll go back to just being colleagues," he joked.

"Hey, hey! Come on, I need a guy friend to hang out with when my wife does her book clubs and mommy and me time!"

"And who's whipped now?" Ben snickered.

"Uh… still you!" Mitaka chuckled. "I'm a husband, that's in my description to wait on my lovely wife. You're Rey's boyfriend without benefits."

"No, I'm not," Ben scoffed. He definitely was.

"Oh reeeally?" Mitaka drawled out. "Let me count the ways, young Solo."

"The hell?" he looked at his friend in befuddlement.

"Sorry, my wife's reading sonnets with her book club this month," Mitaka chuckled. Then he cleared his throat to begin. "Anyways… You go out of your way to do things for her. You buy her things that you know will make her smile. Apparently, you make her laugh, but you never crack a joke in the locker room. And oh right, you're always together and dude, come on. You can't tell me that you don't even see the body language that you two exude?"

Ben scrunched his nose in misperception.

"There's no body language. We hug. Friends can hug right?"

"Right," Mitaka said. "But you also sit very close together whenever you can. Once I saw her rest her feet on your lap when she was watching us practice on the football field and you two were sitting on the bleachers. It was like the most natural thing in the world with you two. And during the spring play, I saw her rest her head on your shoulder."

"Those are all very harmless things," Ben defended. "We don't hold hands do we? And we certainly don't kiss."

"Yeah but you want to," Mitaka snorted.

"You're impossible," Ben rolled his eyes and took a bite of his pizza.

"Look, all I'm saying is it's cute that you're taking it slow with her. But Rey's not going to be single forever. Who knows, maybe she likes you back."

"Or maybe we're just really good friends."

"Keep telling yourself that, coach," Mitaka chuckled as the man in denial shoved him.

~.~.~.~

"Who came up with that off tackle play against the nickel defense in the middle of the second quarter? That was a genius move," Rey exclaimed.

"You liked that, huh?" Ben smiled as he looked over her from the driver's seat.

After the pizza dinner, Ben and Rey were riding home in his truck. Often times she would carpool with him to work and football games because they were neighbors. Usually Rey didn't watch much contact sports. She was a fan of tennis and volleyball. But when she met Rose when she started teaching and especially Ben when they became friends, she indulged herself like everyone else at Corellia High in the world of football. This town loved the sport and she didn't want to be the only one left out. A smart, beautiful woman who also appreciated football? Rey was his dream girl.

"I took that from a play I ran in my college days at our senior bowl. That baby won us the championship too," Ben proudly beamed, reminiscing his old glory days.

"That was genius," Rey repeated. "Not to mention the fake punt and going for it fourth down in the fourth quarter with the quick slant to the wideout."

"They were showing blitzes all night. They really kept us on our toes," he shared.

"But you handled it like a pro, Ben. Very confident," she looked over at him and winked.

This woman teased him, but he honestly didn't know if she were doing it on purpose. With her knowledge of his favorite sport and her little gestures like waves and winks, it was times like these where he wished he didn't have permanent residence in the friendzone. God, he hated that word.

"Thanks," he grinned. "People sometimes forget that a contact sport like football isn't always about strength."

"That's understandable," she nodded in agreement. "And you're absolutely right."

"It's also a battle of wits," he said. "Having a game plan, a clear cut strategy and reading your opponents is just as important to condition these boys as teaching them how to tackle each other," he said passionately. "They're really great kids. Very bright."

She glanced over at his passionate expression. He was thinking deeply of his appreciation for the boys on his team. Ben was like a guardian, a big brother, a mentor to them, and he took his job seriously. She admired that about him.

"Can I ask you something?" Rey said out of the blue.

He glanced at her briefly with a welcoming grin.

"Shoot."

"How come you don't have a girlfriend?"

Ben almost jerked the steering wheel and drove them off to the shoulder at her sudden question.

"W-what?" he stuttered.

"I'm sorry," she clumsily chuckled. "That's a little too personal."

"N-no. It's fine," he cleared his throat. "We can talk about that. I mean, last week you and Rose were talking about cuticles so I'm pretty much alright with whatever topic you want to talk about," he chuckled. This eased the apparent awkwardness in the air.

"It's just," she began. "You're a super nice guy, very confident like I said, and fun to be around. Why haven't you gone out and find yourself a girl to spoil?" she wondered.

Confession time…

When Rey first met Ben, she thought he was handsome but quickly assumed he was taken, especially since many of the female faculty were drooling over him. But his looks weren't the only thing that drew her in (although she could stare at his deep brown eyes forever). They spoke for only a few minutes his first day and she was engulfed in the way he spoke passionately about anything and everything. However, nothing came of her brief crush on him since that day. As they say the rest was history because she found an even better relationship with him as best friends.

As Rey observed, in the two years they've known each other, Ben rarely went on dates. Which was why she asked that question. A part of her wanted to see if she could get something out of him. She didn't know what exactly, but Rey was curious… as both a friend and a former crush. The word 'former' was being used loosely in this context.

"Ah," Ben reach behind and scratched the back of his head. "I'm not really sure. I mean you know other than the fact that my last girlfriend told me I wasn't boyfriend material, so I don't know if you're just being nice to me or if I've matured since my last relationship," he tried to laugh his way out of this.

"Not boyfriend material? Are you kidding me?! You're like the perfect boyfriend," Rey blurted. "Any girl would be lucky to have you."

"Thanks mom," he teased. His mother would always say that to him when he was young. Actually, she still did.

"I'm serious, Ben," she lightly hit his arm. "And take it from me. You spoil me and I'm just your best friend. Imagine how much more you can give a girlfriend," she said.

What Rey really wanted to say was _how come you never asked me to be your girlfriend?_

What Ben was hearing was _we're just friends so don't even think about making advancements on me_!

"I guess… I'm just waiting for the right girl then. I'm pretty busy with coaching and it's something I'm passionate about. When the right girl comes along, I'll be able to include my passion for her in my everyday life too. At least I hope it's that easy... God, I hope she likes football," he chuckled.

Rey put the idea of being anything more than friends with Ben aside so early on, which was why they became such great friends. Though it was times like these where sometimes her petty crush would resurface for just a tiny moment. _I like football!_ she screamed in her mind. But Ben wasn't seeing her. She was off the table.

"Well I hope you find this girl soon. You're a catch!"

"You're vote of confidence is overwhelming, Rey," he chuckled with her.

He pulled into his assigned covered port and the pair stepped out of his car. They made their way to the apartment building and walked up to their doors. Rey's apartment was directly across Ben's. Their doors faced each other.

"Well, congratulations again, coach," she gave him a hug. "I'm proud of you."

"Thanks, Rey. I really appreciate you and Rose supporting us and going to every game."

"Of course! You're my best friend. I'm your personal cheerleader. I wouldn't miss your games for the world!" she exclaimed.

This time he blushed. He couldn't stop himself from hiding it this time. At least it was when it was just the two of them. Rey certainly took notice of his reddening ears and cheekbones. She almost wondered if it meant anything more. If it was because of her.

They lingered for a moment and stared at one another. This seemed like a longer moment then they usually had when things were silent. Sure, they were best friends, but there were still moments of cloudiness between them that maybe if someone made a move something would happen. Maybe. Unfortunately, more often than not these moments were fleeting.

"Ah… Goodnight Rey," he said. He unlocked his door.

Another missed opportunity was added to their collection.

She unlocked her door as well and before stepping inside her apartment, she turned to him.

"Goodnight, Ben."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Preview of next chapter: Kissing In The Rain
> 
> "I've got the perfect guy for you... I've got this friend at the gym. He's a hottie. You two might hit it off."
> 
> "Your husband is OK with you going to the gym with hotties?" Rey joked.
> 
> "Oh please," Rose rolled her eyes. "He's one of Ezra's oldest friends. Poe knows better than to make a move on me."


	3. Kissing In The Rain

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Here we go... date number 1!

* * *

_**III. ~.Kissing In The Rain.~** _

"I've got the perfect guy for you."

"Good morning to you too, Rose," Rey giggled at her friend when she entered the teacher's lounge the following Monday.

"Yeah. Yeah. Good morning," she quickly said her pleasantries. "Anyways, I know a guy you can go out with this weekend."

"What are you talking about?" she was a bit confused at what her friend was saying.

"You know, because you're back in the dating scene," Rose reminded her.

"Oh that. Rose, I thought about it. I'm fine just being single for a bit longer," Rey waved her friend's notion off.

In truth, Rey wasn't ready to 'put herself back out there' as Rose would say. Was she ready to start a new relationship? Risk getting her heart broken? Risk not finding her prince? More importantly, she wasn't sure she was ready to let go of her unhealthy mixed feelings of a particular football coach slash colleague slash best friend. Rey knew she and Ben were never going to happen, but in their tiny 'almost' moments, her petty crush would always resurface for a day or so. Not to mention she and Ben happened to both be single at the beginning of the year and for some reason Rey felt the need to keep herself single… you know, just in case. But she was only fooling herself – and she knew it – because she and Ben were just friends.

"Rey it's been a year. That's enough time to be single!" Rose broke Rey out of her thoughts.

"I don't know. I don't want to force myself into a relationship if I'm not ready," she admitted.

"Who says you have to force yourself into a relationship? Casual dates are fine."

"I still don't know…"

"Honey, if you're going to sit around and wait for your prince charming to sweep you off your feet, that's not how it works. You've got to put yourself out there," Rose reasoned. "How will prince charming know you even exist?"

Damn. The woman had a point.

"Augh… fine who are you thinking?" she gave in.

"I've got this friend at the gym. He's a hottie. You two might hit it off," Rose winked.

"Your husband is OK with you going to the gym with hotties?" Rey joked.

"Oh please _,_ " Rose rolled her eyes. "He's one of Ezra's oldest friends. Poe knows better than to make a move on me. Ezra's a navy seal. And I love my husband thank you very much!"

"Well how will you know if I'm interested in this gym friend of yours, hmm?"

Rose pulled out her phone, scrolled through her social media feed and found a photo of this 'Poe' guy to show to Rey. Her eyes almost bulged out of her sockets at the photo. He was _attractive._

"Okay, one date."

"Yay, I'll text him your number and he'll call you later!" Rose squealed. She skipped out of the lounge to her lab while Rey continued to make coffee.

On the way to her classroom, she stopped by Ben's office next to the gymnasium to drop him off a cup of coffee. They took turns bringing each other drinks on their break periods because… well, Rey didn't know why. For as long as she'd known Ben, they would do these random things for each other. She didn't mind though. It was a simple gesture and usually they'd talk a bit between breaks since her classroom was closer to the gymnasium than Rose's chemistry lab.

"Knock, knock," she said at his open door frame.

"Coffee, yes please," Ben sighed in relief when he saw Rey with two mugs stepping inside.

"Well hello to you too," Rey teased. "You and Rose really need to learn better bedside manners," she giggled.

"I'm sorry," he chuckled. "Good morning, Rey. How are you? Can I have some coffee please?" he quickly asked.

She rolled her eyes and handed him his drink. He thanked her and nearly gulped half his cup.

"Coffee addict much?" she said.

"Sorry," he chuckled. "Mitaka and I spent all weekend reviewing tapes and coming up with a game plan."

"Hey, no worries. You're talking to a workaholic too," she said. "Whenever we start a new novel, I read it cover to cover the night before we start in class."

"Why?" he was curious.

"Well the totally nonweird answer is because I'm a teacher and I like to be prepared. But the typical nerd inside me reads it because well… I'm a book nerd," she laughed.

"I bet you've read like every single book known to man though," he joked.

"Only the ones with love stories," she said.

"If you search hard enough, even a space opera can have a love story," he smirked.

"If you're still making fun of me for liking _Galaxy Wars_ , then I will not invite you to movie night when their next film comes out!"

"Hey, hey. I'm not making fun," Ben chuckled. "Remember I'm a fan too! But I would've never pegged a sci-fi movie having romance until you pointed it out. Come on, you wouldn't deny me, your _Galaxy Wars buddy_ , the final installation of the movie? I have to know if Kylo Ren redeems himself… and sure if he gets with that scavenger girl. Though I'm not sure she can forgive him for all the bad crap he's done. I feel like if he does, they might kill his character off. Which would suck if they do."

"Death cannot stop true love, Ben. All it can do is delay it for a while," she said to him matter-of-factly. He stifled a laugh. "Don't doubt me!"

"Like I said, you can find romance anywhere," he jabbed back playfully.

"And what are you a romance novel expert?" she stuck her tongue at him.

"I know you are," he teased.

Rey got up to walk around his office while he went back to his playbook, checking out the random things on his shelf. She noticed not all of the items on Ben's shelves pertained to football. There were actual books. She pulled one off the shelf and inspected it. It looked weathered but in good shape. Like it had been read many times. Even more surprising, there were annotations in them as well.

"Um, Ben?"

He looked up from his playbook at Rey.

"What's up?"

She turned to face him, showing a couple open pages of the book she was holding.

"I didn't know you were a book nerd," she grinned like a cheshire cat.

"I'm not a book nerd," he closed his playbook and got up to walk to her.

"Then explain your elaborate connotation of _The Great Gatsby_ ," she quipped a brow at him.

"Just because I have a few books on here doesn't make me a book nerd," he claimed. "And who wouldn't enjoy _Gatsby_? It's a classic."

The literature buff she was, Rey had to agree.

"Mhm…"

She didn't believe his front one bit, her smile growing larger until he caved.

"Okay, you know how I had a football scholarship in college?"

"Yup."

"Well, I had to have an undergrad major too and so I chose English."

"Wow, I don't think I ever knew that about you," Rey was genuinely surprised. "That explains why you're good at communicating with the varsity boys."

"Thanks," Ben blushed at that compliment for some reason. "I guess my football career paved my path, so I stuck with the sports route," he said. "But I do enjoy a good read now and then."

"I would've never pegged you for a book nerd though," she smirked.

"No one is as big as a book nerd as you, Rey," he teased.

"I'd be mad but that's so true," she grudgingly agreed.

She continued to peruse his novels on the shelf. There really wasn't that many, only about handful of the classics, but Rey was impressed that he had them and even wrote in every single one of them.

"Which one of these is your favorite? And please don't tell me _Catcher in the Rye_. You're so not a Holden Caulfield, Ben," she kidded.

"If you must know," Ben joked. He opened his bottom drawer rummaging for an item. He pulled out a weathered hardcover copy of a book and handed it to Rey, who had come up to him and was leaning on his desk.

" _Gone With The Wind_. Impressive," she said as she flipped the pages. "Why this one?"

"Other than it's a classic?" Ben said, causing Rey to laugh. "Well it's the got the best of many worlds… war, adventure, romance. I wrote a report on a book of my choice in middle school and found this on my parents' bookshelf. After I read it, I even watched the movie. I don't know why I like it. I just do."

Rey smiled at him. It made him a bit nervous to keep his eye contact with her.

"Plus, I don't think I have to tell you that it has one of the best kisses in the history of literature," he added.

Rey's eyes widened in surprise.

"No, it doesn't! _Princess Bride_ does!"

"Rey come on," Ben took the book from her and flipped the pages freely. "You saw the movie too, right? When Rhett and Scarlett kiss? The man knows what he wants, and he wants her," he said proudly. "He let her know that no man could make her feel that way. All that in one kiss!" he smirked.

She narrowed her eyes playfully at him.

"Let's just agree to disagree," she said diplomatically.

"I don't know… I've been told that women like when a man goes for what he wants."

"So you like to take control?" she almost seemed to be smirking at him.

"I-I mean, I'm no Clark Gable…" he nervously replied.

Rey giggled at his flushed face. She sat back down and resumed drinking her now lukewarm coffee.

"So I take it _The Princess Bride_ is your favorite book?" he asked after putting his favorite novel back in the drawer.

"Hands down," she nodded. "It's got the best of many worlds too," she copied his sentiment. "Fairytale romance and adventure. Have you read it?"

"Would you still be my friend if I said no?"

"Ben Solo! You've never read it?!" she was shocked.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I just… you know… princess… bride… the name didn't really intrigue me as a kid. And the cover… well it was two people kissing. What 13-year-old boy would be unashamed to pick that book from a library and read it?"

"Well there's the red cover with the castle on the hill," she pointed out.

"Yeah but… oh come on, Rey. I'm sorry! It just wasn't something a teenaged boy was interested in," he chuckled as she smacked his arm.

"Typical, if it doesn't have cowboys or aliens on it you won't read it."

"Hey, I mean if it had a very attractive woman on it, that works for guys too," he joked.

"Actually, it does," she said matter-of-factly.

"What?" now he was interested.

"Mhm," Rey grabbed her phone from her back pocket. She went on her browser to quickly search something and handed her phone over to Ben. Sure enough there was a sultry image of a naked woman surrounded by birds, skulls, death and chains.

"Okay… you and I are talking about the same book, right? That Buttercup girl and the farm boy?"

"Yes," Rey giggled at Ben's description of the story.

"How is this a cover for that story?" he gave her back the phone.

"It's actually a neat story. When William Goldman wrote this novel, he wanted to include romance and adventure. He published it under fantasy since it was about princes and princesses and pirates and swords and stuff," she explained. "Before he made a decision for his cover, the publisher just hired some guy to create a generic cover for a fantasy novel with a female lead. So, the artist - without reading the thing - just drew this markup for a first run copy of the book."

"Interesting," Ben said. Then he had to ask. "How many copies do you have of _The Princess Bride_?"

"What makes you think I have more than one copy?" she tried to sound coy.

Ben looked at Rey with a smug expression and a smirk on his lips.

"Okay, okay," she gave in. "I have every single copy of every single cover except this one," she pointed to her phone.

"Hard to find?"

"Very," she said. "Because it wasn't a cover that depicted the actual story, they took this copy down from the bookstores almost immediately and republished with the red one and the castle. There are only a thousand copies of this first edition paperback out there. They call it the 'two-week edition' because it was only on shelves that long. Trust me Ben, I've been searching for years."

"Of course you have," he chuckled.

"You mock me but if I ever come across it, I will force you to read it, deal?"

"I've definitely got nothing to lose there," Ben laughed. "Deal."

They shook on it and continued to finish their drinks.

"I've got a question about your story."

"What's up?"

"Why does he say, 'as you wish'? Isn't she just bossing him around?" Ben wondered.

"I thought you've never read the book?"

"I watched a bit of the movie in a waiting room at a doctor's office somewhere."

"Ah okay... Well she realizes that he means something else entirely, he's saying he loves her and eventually she feels it too," she explained. "If you think about it, 'As you wish' really does mean 'I love you' in a way. It means you put someone else's needs ahead of your own, if only for their comfort. Love is selfless. And Westley loved Buttercup selflessly."

Rey felt proud of her answer. She beamed confidently at what she said and believed it to be the reason for that well-known phrase.

"Spoken like a true romantic," he smiled genuinely at her.

~.~.~.~

"Do you have any more heels other than these three colors?"

"Most of them are black because I double them as heels to wear for work."

"Babe, you need a flirty pair like blue or red ones," Rose said of her friend's bland shoe collection.

"Yeah well my teacher's salary barely helps me pay for rent so I'll have to hold off on that for a bit."

Rose gave up on trying to flirt up Rey's attire and got up from her friend's bed, looking around the room.

"What's this?" she picked up an object on her desk.

Rey peered over her shoulder from the bathroom to see what Rose was asking about.

"Oh, Ben gave me that a couple weeks ago. Just a little gift."

"Crap, did I miss your birthday?"

"No," Rey giggled. "And thanks for remembering my birthday, bestie," she teased. "He just saw it when he went shopping one day at World Market and he said he thought of me, so he bought it for me."

It was a ceramic mug that had a built in warmer to keep a beverage at the right temperature throughout the duration one enjoyed their drink. Ben knew of Rey's favorite past time for reading (naturally) and she had complained to him once that sometimes she'd get so immersed in a book that she would forget to sip her coffee or tea. By the time she'd remember it'd go cold.

"That was nice of him," Rose said of the sentiment.

"I thought so," Rey smiled to herself, remembering how happy she was the day Ben dropped it off.

A thought occurred in Rose's head for a moment.

"Say, have you ever considered going out with Ben?"

"Huh?" Rey said, snapping out of her thoughts.

"He's good looking and I'm pretty sure he's single. Why not, right?" Rose said non-chalantly putting the mug back down and perusing her bookshelf.

"I never really considered him. Really, we're just good friends," she let the thought linger for a bit but brushed it off and went back to getting ready.

Like she would ever tell anyone about her secret crush on Ben. No matter if it were in the past.

"Hm. Just a thought," Rose didn't go into much detail. She didn't think of Ben either as a suitor for Rey because they were all friends.

"Alright, what do you think?" she stepped out of her bathroom.

Rey twirled a few times in front of Rose for her friend to critique her ensemble. She donned a navy blue polka dot dress and grey pumps.

"Fabulous, babe," Rose approved. "Are you going to make a move and hook up with him tonight?"

"Oh my gosh, no of course not!"

"But I thought you wanted to feel the spark? What better way to get electric than sleep with a man?" Rose waggled her eyebrows.

"Well first of all, I have standards, and second, I only said I wanted to try and kiss a guy."

"Oh fine. But if you feel the spark, I better not hear you tell me tomorrow that you didn't go and sleep with the man because of your 'standards'," Rose snorted.

~.~.~.~

Rey met up with Poe at Vizzini's, the hottest new Italian restaurant downtown. He was certainly a charismatic guy. He was quite the gentleman, with a bit of open flirting throughout the night. She couldn't deny that Poe was very attractive, and she was hoping that this attraction could light a flame and feel a spark by the end of the night.

The pair had opted to take a walk to the park after dinner since the restaurant was in the middle of downtown. Things were going well; Rey thought maybe Poe would be the one to give her that perfect kiss.

"So why did you choose English literature as a subject to teach?" he asked during their stroll.

"I had such a huge imagination when I was a kid," she said, "One of my teachers told me to channel my imagination to books so I read a lot. Then I majored in it in college and here I am teaching my love for reading to eleventh graders. It's not as bad as you think, reading. It really challenges your mind to have to imagine words coming to life," she explained.

When Rey talked about reading, she was very passionate. So much that sometimes she'd forget where she was or what she was doing.

"I'm sorry, was I rambling?" she timidly asked her date.

"No need to be sorry," he grinned at her. "It's cute."

"Thanks," she was still a bit embarrassed but not enough to go red in the face.

"I tell you, if my English teacher was as passionate about the subject as you were, I'd have paid more attention in class," they both chuckled.

"What was your favorite subject?"

They stopped along the dirt path and leaned against the iron rails that separated a garden patch from the walkway for a moment.

"I'd like to say P.E., but I know that's not a real subject, right?" he joked.

"I'm friends with the gym coach and he'd probably argue on your side," she giggled. "But he's wrong too."

"Thought so," Poe chuckled. "I would probably say world history, but only because I had the biggest crush on my history teacher in tenth grade."

"That's such a typical guy answer," she laughed.

"It is, yes," he couldn't agree more. "But hey, I guess I'm living my fantasy sort of because I finally get to go on a date with a hot teacher," he winked at her.

She had to admit, he had game.

She smiled at his comment and shared a gaze with him. With his charming smirk and smoldering physique, Poe knew how to make a girl swoon.

The moment couldn't have been any more perfect. They had a great evening, went on a romantic stroll, and he was telling her all the right words. She glanced over at Poe and he half smiled, knowing that she was feeling the heat of the moment as well. Slowly, he leaned in and was just about to touch lips with her when… it began to rain.

No, it started to pour.

They flinched, pulling back before they could connect, looked at each other and laughed. Poe took her hand and hurried to a nearby awning to shield them from the downpour.

"You can never trust the weather channel, can you?" he joked.

"No," Rey laughed. "But a little rain never hurt anyone."

"Very true," he chuckled with her.

"I loved playing in the rain when I was a little girl. It was so fun, despite that every grownup kept telling you that you'd get pneumonia or something."

Poe studied Rey, who had closed eyes and was taking in the moment of the pitter pattering rain above them. Then he had an idea.

"Well, we're grownups now and no one can tell us what to do… screw it, right?"

He offered his hand and they both continued to walk in the rain, laughing and giggling and continuing their almost perfect date.

"I haven't played in the rain in such a long time," Rey hummed as they stood under a flickering streetlight.

"I haven't had this much fun in a long time," he replied.

They shared the same cheeky grins and this time he leaned in all the way to close the gap and give her a long awaited kiss.

~.~.~.~

Ben had come from a store downtown and was walking down the street. He had to stop by the sports equipment store to put in a new order of cleats for his varsity players. He was so proud of his team for making it this far in the state finals. A lot of his free time was dedicated to them lately since there really wasn't much else going on for him these days. He didn't have a girlfriend, his only friends were Rey and Rose at school, but he didn't want to overdo it with them since they saw each other five days a week already, and sometimes on the weekend since Rey was his neighbor. Mitaka had a wife and kid to attend to on the weekends, so he didn't have anything else going on but his varsity football team.

He was walking along the street on his way home when it started to rain. Luckily, he had spotted some grey clouds before stepping out that evening and was prepared with an umbrella.

"Ben?" someone called behind him.

He turned around and in the flesh was his favorite person.

"Rey! This is a surprise," he chuckled. "Fancy running into you of all places downtown."

"Well it's hard not to recognize you in a crowd. What with you bright red umbrella and all."

"Hey, it beats all the black and grey ones blending in. I don't usually like to stand out, but I've ran into people stealing umbrellas before. It rains way too much in Corellia to have my umbrella stolen. This one's mine," he joked.

"Fair enough," she grinned.

He noticed she looked a bit dressed up under her overcoat.

"Casual Friday?" he jokingly asked of her attire.

She laughed slapping him silly on the shoulder.

"Meh, I felt like dressing up."

"And then walking in the rain to ruin your dress and makeup? Weirdo," he teased.

"And what fun are you doing exactly on a Friday evening walking downtown with your bright red umbrella? Hmm?"

"Well you got me there. I was running errands for the varsity team."

"Hmm… dressing up and playing in the rain or run boring errands? I win again, Solo," she snickered.

"Sure, let's go with that," he said. "Are you heading home?"

"Yeah actually. Night's over."

"I'm heading home too. Care to join me?" he offered his umbrella to share.

"Thank you," she smiled. "What a gentleman."

"I feel like I need to be one because you're all dressed up like a queen!"

"Oh stop it," she almost blushed.

They began their joint trek down the street towards their neighborhood. It was a nice way to end her rather interesting evening.

"So how was your night? You know, other than dressing fancy and all. Did you do something fun?" he asked her.

She thought back on the recent couple of hours.

"Not really. Just grabbed dinner and now I'm heading home. Nothing great," she replied.

Honestly, running into Ben was the most eventful thing that evening for Rey.

"Well, even if you're being a weirdo and dressing up to walk in the rain for no reason, at least you're a very beautiful weirdo," he said to her as they walked the rest of the way back to their apartment together.

"Thanks," this time she blushed.

Rey rarely blushed at flattering comments unless it was during a movie or reading a book. Her ex-boyfriends didn't even get her to flash a tint of pink even when they said, "I love you". If there was anyone to ever get her to blush with their words, it was Ben Solo. And he wasn't even trying to hit on her.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Preview of next chapter: A Lot In Common
> 
> "Girrrrrrl!"
> 
> "What?"
> 
> "You were so flirting with him!"
> 
> "We were being friendly, Rose. Finn is funny."
> 
> "Yeah okay. Never heard him crack a joke with me in the three years I've lived in this building."


	4. A Lot In Common

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: This is more of a filler chapter. The aftermath of Rey's date with Poe. By the way, she'll be breezing through these dates every chapter. Rey needs to hurry up with these frogs to find her prince ;)

* * *

**_IV. ~.A Lot In Common.~_ **

_*knock knock*_

"Hey girl! Come in, come in," Rose stepped aside to let her friend into her apartment. "I was just making some coffee, want a cup?"

"Please," Rey said before getting comfy on the couch.

After a moment Rose emerged from the kitchen with two piping hot mugs of coffee for them to enjoy that Saturday morning.

"So, did you kiss Poe?" she asked even before sipping her caffeine.

"Wow, no 'how was the date?' or 'was he a gentleman?', just going straight to kissing and telling are we?" Rey joked.

"Ahh so you two kissed?!" Rose squealed.

"Well, yeah…"

"Oh my gawwwd! Rey, I'm so happy for you!"

"What do you mean?" Rey cocked her head to the side.

"Well you kissed Poe. Does that mean you two are going steady?" Rose didn't think she'd need to clarify.

"Rose, it was one date and one kiss. Going steady, really?" Rey looked at her skeptically.

"Right, right. I guess it's not really going steady until after you hook up… did you two-"

"No, we didn't!"

Rose grabbed on to her sides in hysterics at Rey's sudden wall of defense.

"Alright so spill. What was it like? The kiss. I don't really care about dinner. I eat food every day."

"Only you would say that," Rey laughed at her friend's bout of energy so early in the morning.

"Don't change the subject! The kiss!"

"It was… adequate," she said.

"Adequate?" Rose was confused.

"Yeah you know… like satisfactory?" she explained.

"You mean like if you graded it, you'd have given him a C?" the teacher in Rose had to ask.

And of course, Rey answered in the same way. "Maybe like a B-. Don't get me wrong, he's a great kisser. I just wasn't feeling it."

"Okay hold on, I thought you said the date went great?" Rose was confused.

"I never said that," Rey frowned.

"Alright back it up," Rose shook her head erratically. "You know what, let's just get straight to the point. Did you feel that romance spark crap when you kissed him?"

"Honestly?" Rey said. Rose looked at her expectantly. "Not really…"

"What do you mean not really?!" her friend was surprised.

"I mean, I liked it. It was pleasurable," Rey shared. "He was charming, really cute, knew what to say… We took a walk after dinner and we kissed in the rain. It's the most spontaneous kiss out there. But I just didn't feel the spark when we did it, you know?"

"You kissed in the rain? Wasn't that messy?" her friend wondered maybe she didn't set up the kiss the best way.

"Kissing in the rain is one of the most beautiful, spur-of-the-moment, romantic kisses ever, Rose," Rey confidently spoke. "That's why I even kissed him in the first place. But… I didn't feel anything really."

"So, what happened after you kissed?"

"I just told him thank you and we went our separate ways. Just walked home and went to bed," she shared.

"He didn't even take you back to your place?! That's jerk. I'm going to tell Ezra to teach him some manners," Rose started fuming.

"No, Rose. It's not Poe's fault," she explained. "He offered to give me a ride back, but I told him I wanted to walk home. And to be honest, I needed that walk home. I actually… enjoyed it."

Rey smiled to herself, recalling her walk home after that date. Even if the date disappointed her at the end, Ben was there to cheer her up. Rose didn't need to know that part, she decided to keep that to herself.

"So… that's it? Poe's out?" Rose was still in disbelief.

"Mhm. Why? What else was I supposed to do?"

"I don't know, anything!" Rose said. "You've got a date with a hot guy on a Friday night and you dismiss him after one lousy kiss? Babe, how long has it been since you've gone on a date?"

"I mean, I broke up with Cal in January. So almost a year."

"That is way too long. I fear you've forgotten how to date," Rose pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration.

"I remember," Rey defended herself. "I just… I want more than just 'casual dating', I told you that."

"You're not even just interested in having a plaything for the time being? Just a quick bang to get off your dry spell?" Rose smirked.

"Oh hush you dirty bird!" Rey tossed a pillow at her. "I mean I won't deny Poe is eye candy, but I don't think I want that anymore. I think I'm ready for love."

Rose let out an exasperating sigh.

"Do you not love a six pack? Because Dameron has one," she said.

"I didn't see his six pack because when would he have shown me, Rose? We didn't go home together," Rey reminded her.

"I bet if you did, you'd think twice about that spark. Trust me," Rose winked.

"Well too bad," Rey said. "His kiss didn't incite enough for me to want to see his abs anyways."

"You say that now- "

"I mean it," Rey interrupted her. "And like I said. I'm looking for love, not lust."

"Well that's going to be pretty hard to find this quick."

The two ladies sipped their coffee for a bit in silence.

"Love's not supposed to be this hard. I mean it is, don't get me wrong. Love is complicated. Relationships aren't easy… But feeling it for someone? Sure, it may be cloudy at first, but when it's real, you'll know. That's the easy part. It's supposed to be easy to feel. And when I meet the right guy, I'm sure it will be clear," Rey explained.

"You are such a hopeless romantic, Rey," Rose chuckled.

She really should have known better. She should have known that looks weren't everything. Even her precious Buttercup knew that of prince Humperdinck. He may have been a handsome prince, but he wasn't the man of her dreams. Maybe the next one would be it…

Just then, there was a knock on Rose's door. She got up briefly and answered it.

"Hey Finn, good morning! How was your trip?" she greeted her neighbor.

"Hey Rose, it was good. Ate too much food but hey, what are business trips for than to enjoy the per diem on your company's dime, right?" he joked.

"Very true. Food always tastes better when it's free," she agreed. "Come in for a bit."

"Sure, thanks," he said.

Rose allowed her neighbor to step inside before closing the door.

"Finn, this is Rey, she's a fellow teacher at Corellia with me. Rey, this is my neighbor Finn. Just hangout for a sec, I'll grab your mail."

Rose excused herself down the hallway to grab said mail for her neighbor. Finn decided to take a seat on the opposite side of the couch and nodded curtly at Rey. She didn't want the awkward silence, so she figured to just talk to the guy. He seemed nice anyway if Rose was friendly with him.

"So Finn, what is it that you do?"

He didn't expect her to answer him, but who could pass up an opportunity to talk to a beautiful woman?

"I'm a traveling salesman. Was in Tatooine for the week for a convention," he shared.

"Oh Tatooine. A friend of mine has family from there. I hear the food is pretty good."

"Yeah, no one makes a mean steak like Jabba's," he agreed.

"I love steak," Rey gushed. "Too bad my teacher's salary can't afford it every day."

"Oh believe me I can't afford it either. That's why I always order it whenever I fly on my company's dime," Finn chuckled.

"Nothing tastes better than free food," they both laughed. "Do you like flying?"

"I like going to new places. I just don't like the flying because I never get a window seat. Everyone hogs them because our flights are so long," he chuckled.

"Yeah I'd be upset too if I wasn't comfortable on a long trip," she agreed. "Do you get any free time on your trips?"

"Sometimes if it's a week long. If it's a day or two we're in and out. I got to stay an extra day."

"Do anything fun?"

"Sort of," Finn said. "There was a little convention for this movie I like, _Galaxy Wars_. I kind of geeked out for a day downtown."

"No way! I love _Galaxy Wars_!" Rey exclaimed.

"Really?! I don't know of many people who like it these days. Just because the last two films have been so controversial."

"I couldn't agree more!" Rey excitedly nodded. "But I like all the films, I'm a die-hard fan."

"I don't know, I'm a pretty huge fan myself," Finn teased. "Don't think I've ever met anyone who loves it more than me."

"Well you have now," she smirked, getting him to chuckle.

"Are you more of a Resistance or First Order fan?" he asked.

"I don't know, honestly," Rey said. "I mean I'm all about the light side with the Resistance. But the First Order just doesn't seem to stem from pure evil. More like manipulated fear for the weak."

"I've never thought of it that way."

"Well I can't take all the credit," she chuckled. "I have a colleague at work who likes _Galaxy Wars_ too and that's how they described the First Order."

"So, do you believe Kylo Ren isn't pure evil?"

"I think he's conflicted," she said. "Like he's a villain who thinks he's fighting for the 'good side', but deep down he's not a villain. He's just trapped."

"Never thought of it that way," Finn shrugged.

"You can always find the light in someone," Rey said.

"Well I'm definitely more open minded to the dark side now. But I'm still a light side fan."

"So you're with the Resistance?" she smiled.

"Obviously," he chuckled. "Yes, I am. I'm with the Resistance."

The way he said it made Rey giggle.

"What about you?" he asked her.

"I guess I'd put myself in the grey area, but lean closer the Resistance too," she said. "It's good to have balance," Rey shared.

"Couldn't agree more," Finn smiled.

At some point, Rose had stepped back into the living room with Finn's mail and was watching from afar for Rey and Finn's conversation to conclude. She speculated something brewing between her best friend and her upstairs neighbor.

"Hey Finn, here's your mail," Rose finally introduced herself to their conversation.

"Ah thank you," he said and grabbed the stack of envelopes from Rose. "Really appreciate it, neighbor."

"Anytime! I owe you for watering my plants when Ezra and I went to Canto Bight for a weekend."

Finn got up and made his way towards the door.

"Well it was very nice to meet you, Rey. But I've got to get back to my cat. She's probably ripping up my curtains because I haven't fed her yet," Finn joked.

"Don't worry, that's how Rose gets when she doesn't have her midmorning snack between chem labs," Rey teased.

"She's just jealous that she doesn't have an oven in her classroom," Rose giggled.

"I'd be happy with just a microwave at my desk," Finn chuckled.

"It was nice to meet you too, Finn," Rey said to him "Good luck with the window seat hoggers on your next flight."

"I will, Rey. Appreciate it," he chuckled. "Thanks. See you, Rose!"

After Finn left, Rose turned to Rey and gave her a knowing look.

"What?" Rey nervously chuckled.

"Girrrrrrl!"

"What?" Rey asked again.

"Oh please. You were so flirting with him!" Rose pointed out.

"Oh my gosh, no I wasn't!" Rey protested.

"Mhm… well he was flirting with you and you were taking the bait, giggling like a lovesick teenager."

"I wasn't giggling like a lovesick teenager. What does that even mean?"

"I don't know, like the way you get all giddy reading your books. Or the way you and Ben laugh at those silly Galaxy Trek movies. You act like teenagers and get excited at the littlest things about it."

"It's Galaxy _Wars_ , Rose. Never confuse that other franchise with this one!" Rey's fangirl side proclaimed.

"God you're such a nerd sometimes," Rose rolled her eyes playfully. "But I guess that helped you this time because my handsome neighbor is also a Galaxy _Wars_ fan," she emphasized the word playfully. "Nerd love, it's so adorable."

"We were being friendly, Rose. Finn is funny."

"Yeah okay. Never heard him crack a joke with me in the three years I've lived in this building."

"Maybe because he knows you've got a navy seal husband," Rey pointed out.

"Mhm. Exactly. And that's why he's prowling on you, sweetie."

"Why do you think every eligible guy is vying for me?"

"You say that like it's a bad thing!" Rose exclaimed. "Shoot if I wasn't married to my man, I'd be swimming in dates every night."

"Oh Rose, Ezra is so lucky he's tied you down," Rey teased.

"Hey, I'm in love with my husband and I wouldn't trade it for the world. I just live my single life vicariously through you," she laughed.

"Well there's nothing exciting in my single life right now so you're shit out of luck," Rey kidded.

"We'll see about that," Rose mischievously smirked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Preview of next chapter: Sunset
> 
> "Do you think I should go on a date with Finn?"
> 
> "Is there anything stopping you?"
> 
> "I-I don't think so..."
> 
> They shared a gaze for a moment. She couldn't really read his expression.
> 
> "Then there's no real reason to say no, right?"
> 
> "I guess not."


	5. Sunset

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Sorry if you want me to be more elaborate with her dates with other guys. I'd like to say they're not important, but they are obviously. But I'd much rather write more Reylo than anything else lol Next chapter is one of my favorites. But first, chapter 5!

* * *

_**V. ~.Sunset.~** _

It was the final week before the semester break and the days were becoming a bit more stressful at Corellia high. Not only were teachers pressured to hurry up with their lesson plans, but students were itching to go on holiday. They were being antsy as ever day by day. The semester break couldn't come any faster…

Ben, Rey and Rose were having an early lunch during free period at the bleachers since Ben was taking some extra practice time with his varsity players. The trio ate together every day wherever they need be and away from the cliquey faculty groups in the teacher's lounge. This band of misfits stuck together somehow.

"Nice one, Luke! Just remember don't lead with your head, lead with your shoulder!" Ben instructed his star linebacker.

After giving directions, he turned back to the ladies who were lounging in between bleacher seats. They continued to enjoy the fresh grilled chicken sandwiches Rose made for everyone (during her first period class in the chem lab of course).

"I got to hand it to you, Ben. You've really turned the team around since you became head coach last year. Our school is actually winning games and being recognized around the community," Rose said to their friend. "You and Mitaka should be proud."

"They've always had it in them, Rose. They just needed a motivator, not a dictator," Ben said of their previous head coach, Unkar Plutt. The old coach acted more of a drill Sargent than a coach and ran these poor boys to the ground. "These are just a bunch of kids who are playing a sport they love. If they do their best, they'll win."

Rey glimpsed at Ben and smiled at his simplicity. Never one to need the spotlight, he sure had a pure heart. He looked over at her and returned the gesture. He quickly took a bite of his sandwich before surveying the boys on the field.

"You ladies have any big plans when we go on break?" he made some small talk.

"If you count grading papers and binge watching a show on Netflix big plans, then yes," Rey joked with her friends.

"Believe it or not, she's not kidding," Rose cackled, earning a slap on the shoulder from Rey. "What about you, Ben?"

"I've got a thing on Saturday but other than that nothing really. Will probably work on some game plans."

"Oooh what thing? Dish!" Rose begged.

"I'm not going to gossip," Ben chuckled.

"Oh come on, Solo. Humor us girls!" Rose and Rey giggled. Being the odd one out, Ben was always outnumbered by the women.

"I really need more guy friends," Ben rolled his eyes before taking a bite of his food.

"Well you've got Mitaka. Why don't you hang out with him?" Rose pointed out.

"Because I spend all day with him," he explained.

"You see us all day," Rey pointed out teasingly.

"Yeah but…" he fumbled what he wanted to say. "But Mitaka and I work together, he's the assistant coach. And on his free time, he's got his wife and kids. I only get to see you two during our breaks. It's a nice balance."

"Right, so what are you doing Friday? Got a hot date or something?" Rose continued her ribbing.

"Or something," he said dismissively.

"With a girl?" Rose waggled her eyebrows. "Come on, Ben. You're so secretive with your love life. Dish please!"

Rey looked at him as well, curious to know if he was actually going on a date or something. Not that she cared. But she cared enough to make sure he was happy and was with a nice girl. _Keep telling yourself that, Rey. Keep telling yourself that._

"Hey, I thought we were talking about Rey and her unhealthy couch potato life?" he tried to teeter the subject.

"Hey!" Rey tossed her napkin at Ben. He chuckled.

"It's true though," Rose joked along and high-fived Ben. Suddenly her fixation on Ben went away and she segued to the next subject. "But I have a fix for that!"

"What do you mean?" Rey and Ben looked over at Rose.

"Guess who came by my apartment yesterday after lunch," Rose said to Rey.

"I don't know, your sister?"

"I wish! I haven't seen Paige in ages! Why does Yavin have to be three hours away," Rose pouted. "Anyway, nope. Finn," she grinned widely.

"Oh?" Rey said.

"Who's Finn?" Ben wondered.

By this time, he was half listening to their conversation and half paying attention to his kids since Mitaka was running a new play with them.

"Just a very nice and apparently funny neighbor of mine who's interested in Rey," Rose said nonchalantly.

Ben glanced at Rey with an amused expression. She playfully narrowed her eyes at him and turned to Rose.

"So she says," Rey rolled her eyes at Rose's comment. "Okay, so what about Finn?"

"Well… he tried to make small talk with me but come on, nothing gets past me. So, I just went straight to the point and asked him why he came over."

"And?"

"He was asking me for your number," Rose smirked.

Ben suddenly snapped his attention to Rey. This time there was no playful expression whatsoever. She was oddly confused at the way he was looking at her.

"Please tell me you didn't give it to him, Rose. I told you I wasn't interested."

"Girl please," Rose dismissed. "If you want to get back in the dating game then you've got to take the bait for the eligible guys who ask you. And you and Finn clicked so well."

Ben decided to place his sandwich down and quickly got up from his bleacher. He wasn't sure where he was going but he just didn't want to be there. Thankfully, some of his boys were in need of his assistance and Mitaka called him over, giving him a real excuse to leave.

"Excuse me," he said politely to the ladies and turned to the boys. "Anakin, Obi! Break it up fellas!"

Rey subtly caught on to Ben's sudden change in mood. She wondered why? He didn't really go far, was only a few feet away, but he still seemed uncomfortable. But she didn't get a chance to dwell on it as Rose continued to talk about her neighbor.

"Anyways. I still think you should give Finn a shot. You two have a lot in common. That's almost textbook a sure thing in romance isn't it?"

"I don't know, Rose. What if it ends up bad like my date with Poe? I felt bad for turning him down for a second date when it didn't seem like anything bad happened during our first one. It was just me who didn't feel a spark," Rey expressed her concerns.

Rose understood and patted her friend's shoulder.

"Look, jokes aside… There's no knowing unless you go on a date with him. It's just one date, Rey. Also, you don't have to kiss him. I know you're looking for that perfect kiss but for now just look for a good enough guy to take things slow if you want. Do whatever makes you comfortable."

"Let me think about it," she said to her friend.

"That's better than nothing," Rose shrugged at her friend's decision. "Just keep your mind open when Finn texts you, alright?"

Just then, Rose's phone rang.

"Oh, it's Ezra! Be right back!"

Rose got up and excused herself to the other end of the bleachers to chat with her husband for a bit. Rey thought for a moment if she really should try this dating thing again and go out with Finn. He was a nice guy to talk to and they did seem like they had a ton in common. What was there to lose, right? She looked up and suddenly met eyes with Ben, who had been apparently staring at her for who knows how long. He seemed to have felt that he got caught and looked away immediately. Curious of his recent behavior, she got up and walked over to stand beside him as they watched the boys run the new plays.

"Hey, how's the team looking?" she asked casually.

"They're looking good. They've just been trying this new play for our next game so they're learning the mechanics of it all. Should be ready by the next game," Ben said. "Where's Rose?" he looked around for their other friend.

"Ezra called her. You know she's going to take every call from him when she can. He's been deployed for months now."

"I miss that guy. Hopefully he gets back soon, and we can all have dinner or something with him and Rose."

"You mean like a double date?" Rey playfully quipped a brow at him.

Sometimes Rey would tease Ben and they both knew it was all in good fun. Why she teased him? She didn't know. It was almost always natural. One may call it flirting, but they were best friends, so she thought nothing of it. But there was no denying that in the back of Rey's mind she may have had some truth in her jokes with Ben. He of course always wished she meant it.

"N-no," he suddenly grew nervous. "Like a group of friends welcoming back a soldier. They're our heroes you know!" he tried to play it cool.

"Oh Ben, I'm just joking," Rey chuckled.

He tried to change the subject away from this to something else.

"So, what's this I hear you're back in the dating game? Finally going to find yourself a gentleman caller?" he joked.

"Gentleman caller? Okay Tennessee Williams," she giggled.

"You know what I mean," Ben chuckled. "Okay how about a suitor?"

"Maybe," Rey said playfully. "Rose wants me to start dating again and I figured why not, right? What am I waiting for?"

This was not the right subject Ben should've brought up. He wasn't sure how to answer her.

"Fair enough," he said plainly. "But are you ready to go out and date again?"

"I mean, is anyone ever really ready?"

"Good point. Just don't be going out with guys because Rose is pushing you to or you feel like you have to, ok?"

His advice was always something Rey took to heart.

"Do you think I should go on a date with Finn?" she asked him seriously.

"I'm not really the best person to answer that. I barely know the guy," he kept his gaze at the boys, not wanting to look at her face.

"Do you think I should take a chance then with a guy?" she looked over at him. She knew he was avoiding her gaze. But the avoiding didn't last long.

"Is there anything stopping you?" he turned to her seriously.

This caught her a bit off guard. For one, Ben's expression was once again confusing. And another, her own thoughts about dating were jumbly.

"I-I don't think so…"

They shared a gaze for a moment. She couldn't really read his expression to her answer. Neither could he tell if she was saying some underlying reason instead.

"Then there's no real reason to say no, right?" he managed to say.

"I guess not," She slowly nodded.

They turned their attention back to the field to ease whatever this air was between them.

"Who knows, this guy might be your knight or prince or dragon slayer," he lightened the mood. "You're into that stuff, aren't you?" he smirked.

"Yes, and you're point?" she giggled.

"Only way to find out then is if you leave your tower and meet these guys and see which castle you'd like to live in," he joked. "I bet you'd choose the sparkly one with the even higher tower than yours."

"You tease me, but I bet there's a closet romantic in you, Ben Solo," she playfully shoved him.

"Maybe, who knows?" he chuckled.

"I guess we'll see what happens then with Finn."

"I guess so…"

In the back of her mind she was hoping Ben would tell her not to go out with Finn. She wasn't assuming he would ask her out instead - though that was also on her mind - but she was just hoping he'd care. Something, anything. Damn this petty crush…

Might as well give Finn a chance.

"I better head back to my classroom and set up for next period. I'll talk to you later?"

"Yeah of course," Ben gave her a side hug.

"Have fun on your 'secret thing' on Saturday," she teased.

"Have fun stormin' the castle," he winked.

~.~.~.~

After exchanging a couple of texts throughout the week, Rey agreed to have dinner with Finn that Saturday night. She realized that she and Finn really did have much in common. From their favorite hobbies (reading and cooking) to their preferences on pop culture and love of traveling. He cracked a ton of jokes and Rey was laughing until her ribs hurt. And of course, their obsession with Galaxy Wars. They came to an agreement that they were equally crazy fans of the franchise. On paper, this man was her perfect match. But the real test of romance would come with that kiss. Rey figured since they got along well and had many things in common that Finn might actually be the one to fuel her spark.

It was the perfect setting; another picture perfect moment for a kiss. They had gone to a seafood restaurant along the bay and were walking along the boardwalk nearing sunset. How much more romantic could it get?

They lingered at the docks and were watching the boats sailing in the water, playfully commentating on them as if it were a race.

"And the yellow flag is in the lead," Finn chuckled at the boat furthest from them that seemed to be passing by the others in the marina.

"I don't know, it looks like the blue star might catch up," Rey played along pointing at a nearby boat.

They watched the other boats some more sailing pass them.

"What about that ship?" Finn pointed to an older yacht with a striped flag.

"That one? Nah, it looks like garbage," Rey dismissed it. "It can't possibly catch up to the yellow flag or blue star."

Moments later, the old boat caught up.

"You were saying?" Finn mockingly grinned at her.

"I stand corrected, the garbage will do!"

Rey and Finn giggled as they saw it cross the imaginary finish line passing the other boats.

After a while they headed back to his car. This date had gone so well, Rey had forgotten how much she missed being in good company with a guy and getting to know someone for the first time.

"I had a really great time tonight with you, Rey. Thanks for coming out with me," Finn said to her when they reached his car. He was unlocking the passenger door for her.

"Me too, Finn. Thanks for inviting me out," she smiled at him.

He finally got the door unlocked and opened it for her. She was about to step in when he gently touched her shoulder. She glanced at him and they shared a tender smile.

"You know, when we met at Rose's apartment. I just felt like a connection with you," he admitted. "I can't explain. And now that we got to know each other some more, obviously that connection is that we have so much in common."

"That's an understatement, we literally have everything in common," she lightly giggled.

"Maybe that's a good thing. It's a sign." He said softly. She noticed he started to lean in.

"Oh? Of What?" she uttered softly.

"That I should kiss you," he said inches from her face.

She smiled and pressed her lips to his.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Preview of next chapter: Complement
> 
> "Is that why you and I are great friends? Because we're opposites?"
> 
> "I'd like to think we're more of complements. Complements go together..."
> 
> "Ben Solo, are you trying to imply something?"


	6. Complement

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Aside from the final chapter, this is my favorite chapter :) Enjoy!

* * *

_**VI. ~.Complement.~** _

"Thanks for the ride."

Rey unbuckled her seat belt and turned slightly to Finn.

"Of course," he turned to her, hands still gripping the steering wheel. "Rose would've killed me if I didn't properly drop you off," he joked.

"She's a pretty scary lady. Don't be fooled by her shortness and sweet smile," Rey kidded.

"Well I'd hope my father taught me well. Never get involved in a land war with Asia," he snickered. "And I sure as hell don't want to be on Rose's bad side. I don't ever want to see her bad side!"

"Of course, a classic blunder," Rey giggled. "And no you do not! But don't worry, I'll give you a good word."

"Thanks, Rey," he smiled. After a minute. "Are we cool?"

"Yeah," she lightly grinned and stepped out of his car.

Yet again another unsatisfactory kiss at the end of the night left Rey alone as she walked back to her apartment.

It's not that Finn was bad. In fact, she had so much in common with him and they clicked so well, she could even be friends with the guy. Frankly, she would've preferred they just become friends and not go on this date. So long as that kiss wouldn't be too weird for them and they could look past it eventually. Kissing Finn almost felt like kissing a brother. What she thought were mutual things in common for lovers turned out to be mutual things in common for friends. Oh well, this wasn't the one and she wasn't going to dwell on it.

She walked up to her apartment door and was about to unlock it when she turned around and faced the door across from hers. Ben mentioned he had some plans that night but was really vague about it. Maybe he was on a date too? Not that she cared. He could date whoever he wanted.

She thought maybe to just go inside her place and call it a night. But she did see his truck in his parking spot, so he was most likely already home from whatever it was he had planned that evening, right? Without any more thought and not wanting to be alone just yet, Rey decided to knock on his door.

"Rey?" Ben opened his door but kept it ajar as if to hide something inside. He never did that.

 _Crap_. She didn't even think that maybe Ben brought his date home and she was literally interrupting them in a very intimate time.

"Um, h-hi," she stuttered. "Sorry, am I bothering you?"

"No of course not, you could never bother me," he gave her a genuine smile. "Did you just get home?"

"Yeah," she awkwardly pointed to her door for no reason at all. "Was just thinking to say 'hi' to you since I saw your truck parked. I thought you said you had plans tonight?"

"I do."

"Oh, you do?" She said. Her realization was right. "Crap, am I interrupting something?"

"No, it's-"

"Uncle Beeeen!" a child's cry came from inside his apartment.

Seconds later, the door swung open fully. A little girl with lopsided pigtails made herself known. She smiled at Ben and then at Rey, waiting for someone to acknowledge the moment.

"Ah… Rey this is my niece, Ahsoka. Ash, say hello to my neighbor and friend Rey," he introduced both ladies.

Rey gave Ben an amused look as he anxiously chuckled before she bent down to the child's level to properly say hello.

"Hi Ahsoka. That's such a pretty name," Rey said as she held out her hand.

"You're pretty, Rey!" Ahsoka giggled and shook her hand. Then her eyes lit up. "Wait, are you the same Rey my uncle Ben always talks about to my mom and dad when he comes over for dinner sometimes and-"

"Okay munchkin go wait for me on the couch. Let me finish talking to Rey and I'll be right there," Ben interrupted his niece before she made his face turn crimson.

Ignoring her guardian's words, Ahsoka had other plans in mind.

"Uncle Ben can Rey come inside and play with us for a little bit. Please? I ate my vegetables and you said I can have a reward."

"I thought TV time was the reward?" he said to her playfully, placing his hands on his hips and pretending to be tough.

"I change my mind now. I want Rey to come over."

Ben glanced at Rey apologetically, not sure if this was awkward for her. She grinned at him. It was cute to see this 'Uncle Ben' side. _Very cute_.

"Ash, you can't just decide for Rey to come over. What if she wants to go to bed? It's getting pretty late too and plus Rey just came from somewhere, I bet she's tired," he tried to help his friend out of it.

"Are you tired, Rey?" Ahsoka asked her instead of answering Ben.

'I'm sorry' Ben mouthed to her. He didn't want Rey to feel forced to come over just because a cutie like his niece was trying to guilt her with those beautiful ocean blue eyes.

Rey giggled at Ben and looked at the little girl.

"I'm not that tired actually," she said in reply.

"Then can you come over for a little bit? Please?" those puppy dog eyes did it for her.

"Ash, that's enough. It's alright Rey, you really don't have to," Ben tried to diffuse the guilt trip his niece was putting on Rey.

"Hey, don't I get a say in this?" she said to him, this time putting her hands on her hips playfully.

"Yeah, doesn't she get a say?" Ahsoka bouncily mimicked.

"Great, all the women are ganging up on me per usual!" Ben exclaimed. This elicited a laugh from both girls.

"Well Ahsoka, you did eat all your vegetables which means you certainly deserve a reward. So yes, I'll come over a bit to play. Is that alright, Ben?"

"He doesn't mind, come on!" Ahsoka grabbed Rey's hand and pulled her inside Ben's apartment just like that.

Ben chuckled and let his friend inside, closing the door behind him.

"Uncle Ben, take her coat!" Ahsoka demanded. "Whenever mommy comes home daddy always takes her coat off for her. It's a grown up thing," she told Rey matter-of-factly.

"Good to know," Rey said.

Ben shook his head with a low chuckle and did as his niece instructed.

"You talk about me all the time?" she hurriedly whispered with a smile as he stood behind her to grab her coat sleeve.

Ben blushed, trying to avert answering the question. He helped Rey out of her coat and hung it at his door. Thankfully, his niece said something so he wouldn't have to answer.

"Wow, you look like a princess!" Ahsoka said of Rey's attire.

Well, she did have a date earlier that evening. She was dressed in a purple knee length flowy dress with silver heels and matching jewelry.

"Thanks," Rey smiled at Ahsoka. "Sorry I'm overdressed. I just came from hanging out with a friend."

"Finn?" Ben wondered.

"Uh... yeah," Rey curtly nodded at him.

"Do you dress up when you hang out with my uncle Ben?" Ahsoka asked.

"What?" they both turned to the little girl in shock.

"Isn't uncle Ben your friend?" Ahsoka asked innocently?

"Of course he is, he's one of my best friends," Rey smiled at him.

"He talks about you a lot, so I think you're his best friend too. I talk about my friend Sabine a lot and she's my best friend," Ahsoka spoke non-chalantly.

Rey gave him a funny expression again. Ben tried his best not to grow even more flustered. Thankfully his niece continued to babble, despite that she was oversharing about his life.

"He talks about a lot of things like his football and the mean teachers at his school. But he's always happy when he talks about you," she shared with Rey.

"Well I'm sure Ben is happy when he talks about all of his friends," she said to his niece.

"Oh yeah. He talks about his other friends too. I think what's the other teacher coach name uncle Ben? Michako?"

"Mitaka."

"Right. And then his other friend that's a flower name-"

"Rose."

"Oh, I like roses!" the little girl got momentarily side-tracked. "And then you. He always talks about Rey. I thought it was a boy, but then my mom was teasing him when uncle Ben said something about a dress you wore and then I knew you were a girl since you wore a dress and girls wear dresses and then-"

"Ash, come on, let's go sit on the couch. I'm sure Rey wants to get off her feet."

Ben really needed his niece to stop talking before she literally blurted his deepest secrets to the one person he didn't want to know.

Ahsoka didn't read into this interruption and simply continued to babble but this time about something else at her school as the three of them made their way to Ben's living room. Rey looked over at Ben and smiled at him. She was surprised to hear what his niece had said. This was all new to her as she didn't think he was one to be chatty with other people. Well, other than being chatty with her, Ben wasn't this chatty when he was around Rose or Mitaka even. He talked about her often? What did he say about her? What dress? Hmm…

Ahsoka spent the next half hour talking to Rey about her classmates and the girls talked about Disney movies while Ben cleaned up and set up his guest room for his niece who was spending the night with him. When it was time for bed, Ahsoka of course protested but fell asleep mid storytelling from Ben. Rey stayed in the living room and lounged around for a bit, not ready to go home just yet. She picked up a couple of Ahsoka's toys to set them in her knapsack so she wouldn't forget to take them home with her.

"Hey, you don't have to clean up, I got it." Ben said when he emerged from the hallway.

"Is she asleep?" Rey had put the last of her dolls in her bag and stood back up.

"The kid's a fighter, but she needs her sleep with all her energy throughout the day," he chuckled about his niece.

"She's a sweetheart," Rey said of the little girl.

"And that's how she sucks you in," Ben joked and they both laughed.

"So, your niece was your hot date tonight, huh?" she poked at him.

"I never said it was a date, you and Rose implied it," he jabbed back.

"Fair enough. How old is she?"

"She's 7 but way too smart for her age," he commented. "Her parents are celebrating their anniversary this weekend, so I volunteered to watch her while they went out of town."

"That's sweet of you," she smiled at him. Ben really was the sweetest.

They lingered in the living room for a moment.

"So, um… if you're not in a hurry to head back to your place, would you like some hot cocoa? Ahsoka and I bought a bag when we went grocery shopping tonight."

"I'll never say no to chocolate," Rey said. "Do you mind if I stay for just a bit longer?"

"Of course not, make yourself comfy," he said before heading to the kitchen to prepare their drinks. Ben came back a minute later with two piping hot mugs for them.

"By the way thanks for coming over and hanging out with me and my niece. I know she loves me but I'm a guy and she would much rather be playing makeover than watching football with me," he kidded. "It really meant a lot to her that you came over."

"I should be the one thanking her," Rey said. "I wasn't really in the mood to be alone and your niece kept me company. You too," she winked at him.

"Not in the mood? Did your date go bad or something?" Ben was curious to know what happened.

"Not exactly," Rey said. "It's just… I didn't feel a connection at the end of the night is all. Not the right guy I guess."

They set their mugs on the coffee table and settled comfier on the couch next to each other while Ben channel surfed to put on some white noise.

"Okay, you're going to need to elaborate about what you and Rose were talking about the other day at lunch," he said. "I didn't even know you were going out this often."

"I'd hardly call it often," she shared. "I only went on two dates and none of the guys and I clicked at the end of the night."

"Were you on a date when I ran into you in downtown last week?" he prodded.

"I was… at the end of my date yeah," she confessed.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Same reason why this guy isn't going to have a second date with me. The first one ended dully."

"How so?"

"It's just… you know how I love to read?" she tucked her legs underneath her to get more comfortable.

"If there was a word that meant more than love, then yeah that's you and books," Ben teased. She lightly shoved him.

"Well especially in my favorite book, _The Princess Bride_ , there are so many great examples of the perfect kiss… true love's kiss. And I've never really felt that with any of my boyfriends. I just want it now. I want to be kissed like that and I want to fall in love. I'm done playing games."

It was one thing to say this to herself, and it was one thing to share it with Rose. It was also another type of difficulty to say this to Ben. Hopefully he wouldn't tease her as much.

"Hey I get it," he replied. "Remember my favorite book? _Gone with the Wind_? There's some intense kissing in that one too."

Rey was surprised that he wasn't making fun of her. It was actually a relief. Normally people would think she was a weirdo with her mind stuck in the clouds still believing in fairy tales at her age. She really appreciated it. Then again it was Ben. How could she have ever doubted he'd be insensitive about her feelings?

"The best one," he cheekily added.

"Agree to disagree," she smirked.

"Sure, sure," they both laughed. "Anyways, after my last girlfriend I dated around too for a short time. But that gets old quick. Now if I ever choose to date again, I just want someone to grow old with."

"Wow, I never pegged Ben Solo for a hopeless romantic," Rey teased.

"I never said I was," he defended.

"But you're not denying it," she pointed out.

"Well I can't lose my street cred, I'm the varsity coach after all," he laughed. "Once I go soft, I'll never hear the end of it. Plus, I don't have the time to date. Growing old with someone will just have to wait."

"Aren't you afraid that you're running out of time?" she asked seriously.

"Is that why you're going on dates? Because you think you might be running out of time?" he wondered.

"I don't know… maybe. But also, I just want to finally get that happily ever after, you know?"

"What's the problem with these guys then? Why don't you feel that spark?"

Rey had to think about that for a moment. Why, after two great dates with two decent guys, did she not feel a spark with Poe or Finn?

"I'm not really sure, that's the thing. I mean… I had a lot in common with Finn, and I thought Poe was very attractive. I really don't know what's wrong with me. We had a great time all night, and the moments were set up so well for a kiss but… nothing. No sparks."

That was the truth. It was kind of a bummer for Rey to say it out loud.

"Maybe you need someone opposite of you. Well not completely opposite, but just different," Ben suggested.

"You mean like the whole opposites attract thing? Do you really think that works?"

In Rey's experience, it was a challenge to date someone opposite of her. Her boyfriend before Cal was almost the complete opposite of her and they didn't last long.

"Sort of," Ben said. "The way I see it, people who like a variety of things may seem to hit it off more than people who have every single thing in common."

"Isn't that a good thing to have a lot in common?"

"Sure," he nodded. "But you don't get a chance to learn how to like and appreciate another person's passions."

"I don't know, if you've got nothing in common it might be hard to appreciate the other person's passions," Rey doubted a bit.

"Even two polar opposites have something small in common," Ben assured her. "That's what makes them 'attract' each other. That small force that binds you together. That's what makes it great."

"Is that why you and I are great friends? Because we're opposites?" she half-joked. Let's be real, she was still crushing on the guy.

"Sure, you can say that," he nodded.

"What else is there then?" she tilted her head curiously.

"I'd like to think we're more of complements."

"How is that different or better than opposites attract?"

"Complements go together like puzzle pieces or two sides of one coin," he explained. "They're slightly different, but when together can be the same - complete. We don't fully have opposite interests, nor do we have all the same interests. We balance each other out with the overlap of things."

That was… Rey did not know how to comprehend his words. They were beautiful, but what did it mean really? _Was he trying to hint at something?_ she thought.

"Ben Solo are you trying to imply something?" she lightly smirked.

Sometimes Rey wasn't sure whenever she and Ben were together if they were actually together or not. She had that small crush on him when they first met and knew she had to let go of it. But it was times like these that she gave herself hope that maybe he'd catch on and hopefully find interest in her too. Though he didn't catch the bait. He never did in Rey's eyes. Which was why she constantly reminded herself that she needed to rule out Ben from the start. They were _just friends_.

"N-no," he stammered a bit. "I mean. Like you and I are great friends because we bring out the best in each other with our similarities and differences."

"Oh… okay," she said simply. Ben could have sworn there was a tinge of disappointment in her tone, but he didn't read further into it.

"You should find a guy who's exactly like that for you. Not your opposite, not just your equal even… but your complement."

"I've never thought of it that way," she said to him. "Have you found your complement, Ben?"

Oh, how he wanted to tell her so many things…

"I'm not sure yet," he said instead.

After a silent moment of staring at each other (yes, staring), Ben didn't say anything else, leaving Rey to assume that her silly thoughts of him reciprocating anything was pure fiction.

"I hope you do. You deserve someone to grow old with," she quietly answered.

She scooted over to close the remaining gap between them and rested her head on his shoulder as they watched some late night television. Suddenly the events of the day had caught up to Rey and she was growing weary. It helped that she was resting comfortably beside Ben.

"Just don't give up yet, okay Rey? You deserve to be happy," he encouraged, resting his head atop hers.

It hurt him to say those words, but Ben would never have the guts to tell Rey that he wished he could be her true complement. But to him she was clearly out of his league.

"Well until I find my complement, I'm perfectly fine with having you," she drowsily murmured before she closed her eyes and dozed off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Preview of next chapter: Christmas Party
> 
> "So I was helping Zorii bring in some drinks and she told me that a little birdie told her that someone here has a crush on you."
> 
> Ben froze. He was always careful never to show anything or talk about Rey in front of anyone at school. God he hoped Rose didn't figure anything out.
> 
> "It's Hux. The AP Calculus teacher."


	7. Christmas Party

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: When people drink stupidly, they act stupidly, and stupid things happen. This is your warning because someone is going to be very stupid. Also, another trigger warning of aggressiveness but it's just a tiny part. Enjoy?

* * *

_**VII. ~.Christmas Party.~** _

School was finally out for the winter. While all the students went home to enjoy their winter break, the faculty at Corellia high school were having their annual Holiday party in the gymnasium a couple days before Christmas. The usually smelly gymnasium had transformed into a winter wonderland. It was quite impressive for a school dance for teachers. It was one heck of a fall semester and all anyone wanted to do was kick back and enjoy the night.

Rose and Rey were sitting at the bleachers enjoying the people watching. Despite there being cliques among the faculty, everyone seemed to be enjoying the night in mixed company, forgoing any boundaries of social groups. It was "getting into the holiday spirit," as Rey would say.

"Wow it's like we slipped into an alternate universe where Bazine and Amilyn can be actual friends," Rose said of the two usual enemies chatting away merrily near the dessert table.

"It's called getting into the holiday spirit, Rose," Rey giggled. "No one wants to be a grinch. Anything can happen."

"Speaking of," Rose waggled her eyebrows at her friend. "Why don't you try to find a hottie to kiss tonight?"

"Really? At a work function?"

"Hey, just because we have assholes as faculty members doesn't mean they're not cute," Rose said. "There's Lando the journalism teacher. Isn't journalism like English? Lots of words?"

"Sure, let's go with that," Rey chuckled. "But I don't know, Rose. I was thinking about it and maybe I shouldn't go for someone automatically because we have a lot in common."

"Isn't that the best thing though? It's fireproof."

"You say that but look at what happened with me and Finn," Rey pointed. "We were so compatible on paper, but I didn't feel a spark with him."

"Okay so, what… you want like someone opposite of you?"

"I don't know. Maybe? Try something different?" Rey shrugged. She still wasn't sure what she wanted.

"Alright, well that literally gives you every guy on staff but maybe like a handful." Rose pondered.

"It's a start," she said.

"But please don't tell me you're going to go for your true love's kiss conquest tonight. It's a school party for staff. There's no romance in this," Rose laughed.

"Hey, not necessarily," Rey said. "Getting kissed under the mistletoe is very romantic. Classic, and a true moment of love with the right person. And you know I'm right, what with all the Christmas movies we've watched together over the years!"

"Oy vey," Rose rubbed at her temples. "Alright, let me work my magic and see if I can find you someone here to kiss under a twig," she teased. "But first, I'll be right back. Zorii said she's going to spike the punch bowl and I'm going to distract the principal for her."

Rose got up from her seat and waved at their fellow colleague to signal that she'd be a moment.

"Isn't Zorii the school counselor? She's spiking the punch?" Rey questioned.

"Do you see any teenagers in here? No, so don't be a grinch and ruin the party!" Rose winked and scurried over to help Zorii with the drinks.

Rey was left by herself but not for long. Ben walked in with Mitaka and the other gym teachers and when he spotted her, dismissed himself from the crowd to walk up to his friend.

"Hey Rey, wow you look prettier than ever," he smiled. She was donning a red and white festive dress. "You look like an adorable candy cane."

"Thanks, Ben," she was thankful the lights were dim so he wouldn't see her blush.

The woman rarely turned red but for some reason lately Ben had been the one to crack her.

"Nice to see you wearing slacks and a fitted sweater instead of a windbreaker and gym shorts," she teased. "And is that a collared shirt?!" she feigned a gasp.

"Hey, I dress for comfort for work," he defended. "Plus, it's Christmas. My mother's favorite holiday. I was conditioned to clean up myself at least once a year," he chuckled.

He sat beside her and they continued to chat for a bit.

"And you chose to wear all black? How's that festive?" she continued to tease him.

"You said it yourself, right? Slacks and a sweater. Not gym shorts and windbreaker. That's festive! And I had iron my shirt all by myself!" he made her laugh.

"I see you went with the elbow patches. Nice touch. Very classic," she smirked as she felt the fuzzy grey velvet fabric on his elbow.

"Hey, these things were in style back in my old man's days. They'll come back. Just you wait. Pretty soon everyone will start wearing sweaters with elbow patches again," he said so surely.

"Noted," she giggled. "Is your mother one of those people who go all out for Christmas? The lights, decoration, caroling?"

"That and much more," Ben nodded. "She makes my dad start on the lights for the house literally after Thanksgiving dinner so by the next day our house would be the first one set up for lights. And yes, our house was one of those that went all out," they both laughed.

"Oh wow, that's definitely a fetish for the holiday," she remarked.

"Fetish, obsession… it's all the same to my mom," he joked. "Everything about this holiday I learned from her. Hence, why I dress up. Sort of… don't tell her I'm not wearing dress socks," he winked.

"Secrets safe with me," she giggled. "What else did your mom teach you about Christmas?"

He was about to answer when suddenly the music from the PA system played a lovely tune.

"Oh, this is one of my favorites," Rey happily sighed and swayed her head lightly at the start of the music.

Ben immediately stood up and turned to face Rey.

"Well, one thing my mother taught me, Christmas or no Christmas, was that if a girl tells you she likes a song…" he held out his hand to her. "It means she wants to dance."

He warmly smiled at her, and she paused for a moment in shock at his offer. While his mother certainly had a point, she didn't expect him to offer his hand. She smiled back and gave him her hand.

"Your mother taught you well," she said smoothly as he led her to the dance floor where several other people started swaying to the music.

Ben allowed Rey to place her hands on his shoulders and kept a comfortable space between them while he placed his hands on her waist.

"To be fond of dancing was a certain step towards falling in love," he recited out of nowhere.

Rey's heart skipped a beat. She gleamed at him for a moment. "W-what?"

"Jane Austen?" Ben thought. " _Pride and Prejudice_ , right?"

"Right," she broke into a smile. "How did you know?"

"I read, Rey," Ben joked. "That's how I know. You saw the books on my shelf. Plus, remember? I'm an English major."

She gently shoved him.

"Right, of course," she giggled. "Did you know I love that book?"

"It's not too far-fetched that an English lit teacher who also likes to read love stories likes an Austen classic," Ben teased.

He got her there.

"Still," she said. "I'm impressed."

"Well, if you must know," Ben playfully drawled. "My mother put me in ballroom dancing classes, and I had to be an escort for my cousin for a cotillion when I was younger. It was easy for me to pick up _Pride and Prejudice_."

"Who would've thought Ben Solo is a softie," Rey smirked.

"Shhh," he chuckled.

They continued to sway to the music. She really did like this song as she began humming a bit to herself. When she noticed he could hear her, she started to grow nervous.

"No, keep going. It's soothing," he offered.

"Sorry, I forget that I hum sometimes," she timidly smiled.

"It's cute," he said to her.

She wasn't sure what was going on between her and Ben. Sure, they did a ton of things together, and she's taken naps on the couch with her head on his lap or on his shoulder, so personal space wasn't usually an issue. But with this sweet moment between them and the way he was talking to her, Rey couldn't gather if he was just being nice or if he was trying to be assertive or something. Ben never showed interest in her. This was unfamiliar territory for Rey.

Ben thought about Rey the entire week. After she stopped by from her date with Finn to hang out with him and his niece for the night, he kept recalling the conversation they had about being each other's complements. He couldn't deny any more that he was pining for her again, but it was hard given that she was back in the dating game and had not even considered him a viable suitor. Ben then thought to take it upon himself to be more assertive and see if he could woo her himself. It was hard to read her signals. She was such a close friend. But he still felt the same for her like he did two years ago.

"So," he began. "How's the dating game going?"

_Why the hell am I asking this question?!_ He thought to himself.

"It's… going," she said. Then she sighed. "It's hard. Really hard. Didn't think it'd be difficult to find a guy to connect with."

"Nah, you're just thinking too much about it, Rey. Just relax and let it all be natural. You'll find that connection in no time."

_Okay Seriously Ben, are you going to be her wingman and not hit on her yourself?!_ His inner self was mentally kicking his ass.

"I hope so," she barely whispered.

"I know so," he stared deep into her hazel eyes.

_Were they having a moment?_ Rey thought to herself. She was feeling something stirring in her gut and was a bit confused but anxious about it. Before she could do or say anything about this feeling, Rose came back.

"Hey girl," Rose tapped her shoulder, ending the dance between her and Ben.

He let her go and stepped back a bit to allow their friend to speak.

"I know who your next prospect can be," she said. Then she turned to Ben. "Ben! I almost didn't recognize you without your gym shorts," Rose jabbed. "You clean up nice."

"Thanks Rose," he chuckled. Did he really dress like a teenager during normal school hours?

"What were you two doing?" Rose lightly speculated before she interrupted. She narrowed her gaze between her two friends.

"Oh, Ben and I were just talking while we danced to this song," Rey tried to dismiss. She wasn't sure about her feelings just now and didn't want to think of what to do about them just yet.

Rose would've probed some more but she already had something else on her mind. She immediately shook off any thoughts and brought her attention back to Rey.

"Whatever. Anyways, so I was helping Zorii bring in some drinks and she told me that a little birdie told her that someone here has a crush on youuu," she sing-songed.

Ben froze. He was always careful never to show anything or talk about Rey in front of anyone at school. God, he hoped Rose didn't figure anything out. Rey looked over at him concerningly as he seemed to go pale for a moment about what Rose said. _Wonder why he looked sick?_ She thought.

"It's Hux. The AP Calculus teacher."

"Armitage? Really?" Rey was surprised.

The man was the definition of order. He was strict, uniform, and not to be messed with. What in the world did he see in the carefree daydreamer in Rey?

"Apparently he thinks you're hot. Which you totally are!" Rose agreed to the statement. "He doesn't really know much about you or cares enough to do anything, but he does find you attractive."

"Then what's the point?" Rey was confused.

"Girl you said you wanted to find a guy opposite of you. Armitage Hux is the complete opposite of Rey Niima, don't you agree Ben?" Rose asked their male friend.

Ben fidgeted nervously in place.

"Well Rey is the nicest person in the world," he said. Those weird feelings in her gut started up again. "And Armie is kind of a dullard," he shared.

"See, perfect. Opposites. Now come on, let's see if you can talk to him tonight!" Rose hurriedly pulled Rey away before she could say anything else.

Ben stood alone, sulking that he probably missed his chance.

Rose took Rey to the punch bowl where she and Zorii spiked the drinks and offered her a cup.

"For liquid courage. 'Cause Ben is right, he's kind of boring," Rose said.

"No, I'm not going to get tipsy just to talk to a guy. If I don't find him interesting, then what's the point?" Rey defended.

"Oh, come on girl! You'll never know if you will connect with him if you don't try…"

Rose went on about giving Hux a chance and tried her best to list out some decent enough qualities about the man. Rey was half listening while the other half of her was looking over her friend's shoulder to where Ben was last. She could have sworn there was something there. She felt it. She just couldn't put her finger on it. This was weird. She had brushed aside her feelings for Ben when they decided to just be friends, but now suddenly her crush on him has resurfaced. Okay, lately her crush had been making appearances, but now these feelings were fully back. He was standing alone, stone-faced and seemingly bored. Poor guy. Maybe she could convince Rose that tonight would be a break and could let the mistletoe kiss moment slide. Really, she just wanted to spend the rest of the night with her two friends.

Then the worst possible thing happened.

Gwen Phasma, the World History teacher walked up to Ben and started talking to him. She clearly had some of Zorii's spiked punch and was tracing her hands a little too generously up Ben's arm. _Who does this bitch think she is?_ Ben would never go for a drunk little tart like her. Rey was starting to show more green in the fleck of her eyes just watching the blonde throw herself at him. Ben on the other hand, while didn't seem interested, wasn't even doing anything to shoo her away. While Rey knew that Ben was too nice of a person to shoo people, at that moment, something stirred in her that made her think otherwise and she scowled at the sight.

She then gave her full attention to Rose.

"-so maybe he isn't that bad," Rose was finishing whatever spiel she had of Armitage Hux.

_Screw it,_ Rey thought. She grabbed the cup from Rose's hand and downed it in one swig. She slammed the cup back down and grabbed another one. Then another one.

"Whoa girl, slow down."

After her fourth cup, Rey felt a bit lightheaded. Give it time and she'd feel the alcohol soon.

"If I'm going to listen to Hux talk about derivatives before I get to kiss him, I'm going to need some alcohol," Rey said.

Rose didn't stop her as Rey simply made up her mind.

"Oh god, I think I've created a monster," she said of her friend's behavior.

Rey dismissed that comment and scanned the room for her target. There he was, the pasty man near the coat closet, talking it up with all the other boring guys in the math department. Rey downed her last cup and nodded at Rose before marching straight to her target.

When she reached him, he and the three other men with him eyed her confusingly.

"Can I help you?" Armitage said plainly.

Rey looked at the other faculty members with him – Pryde, Peavey and Snoke.

"Do you fellas mind if Mr. Hux and I have some privacy," she asked, more like forced them to leave. When they did, he turned his attention to her.

"Ms. Niima. How can I help you?" he asked tautly.

"Well Mr. Hux," she almost slurred. Yep, the alcohol was almost fully in her system. "Someone told me you have a crush on me. And I intend to get to the bottom of this juicy rumor."

He quipped a brow at her. "Do you begin all your conversations this way?"

"I do if it's a sure thing," she stared darkly at him.

"Are you messing with me?" he sounded stern. He did not like practical jokes.

"Actually, I'm pretty drunk right now so if there's anyone that's going to take advantage of the moment it's you," she sloppily replied.

Suddenly, the man who wore all black that matched the resting glower on his face softened. Then he mischievously chortled.

"Well then, a gentleman shouldn't leave a beautiful thing like yourself alone in this state," he offered his arm for her to take.

"No idea what you said but okay," she drunkenly chuckled and wrapped her hands around his arm.

"Where to milady?" he asked the drunker by the second Rey.

"Is there any mistletoe around here? I want to know if your cherry red lips taste like it," she said brazenly.

"Right this way," he walked her towards the entrance of the gymnasium that led to the hall.

Rose witnessed the interaction from across the room and her jaw nearly dropped to the floor.

"Hey where's Rey?" Ben said as he walked up to her.

"I can't believe it, but she is actually going to go through with this with Hux," Rose blinked a couple times.

"Wait, what?!" Ben was concerned.

"Look, she's leaving with him right now," Rose pointed at them.

Ben caught his colleague escorting a very disoriented Rey out into the hallway.

"What's wrong with her? Why does she look like she's about to trip on her feet?" he wondered.

"Oh… well… she may have had a little too much to drink," Rose showed Ben the many empty red cups on the table.

Ben grew wide-eyed.

"And you let her leave with Hux?!"

"Yeah, why not? He thinks she's hot."

"And he's an absolute sleezy guy," Ben exclaimed. There was a tinge of spite in his voice, she could easily tell. "Trust me Rose, I hear a lot of nasty shit about him. He takes what he wants and does things his way no matter what. I don't want him to take advantage of Rey when she's like this."

"Crap, why didn't you say anything?!" she began to panic.

"I didn't think Rey would get drunk just to talk to him!"

"Well what do we do? What if he takes advantage of her?"

Ben's eyes widened even more.

"Where is he taking her?" he demanded.

"I don't know. All I know is she wants to kiss him under some mistletoe."

Ben thought for a moment. "There's mistletoe hanging near the girl's locker room. The cheerleaders put it there last week. Come on."

Quickly, he and Rose exited the festivities to find their friend.

Rey found the mistletoe near the entrance to the girl's locker room. She remembered Ben mentioning he had to have a talk with the cheerleaders and his boys in varsity to not fraternize during practice and to be responsible about whatever hormonal ideas they had. Sometimes Ben hated working at a high school, but he wouldn't trade being a coach this these boys for the world.

She wasted no time in crashing her lips to Armitage's when they reached underneath the threshold for that romantic setting under the mistletoe.

While she enjoyed the initial hot and bothered intensity of it all, she didn't feel that spark, not even that mushy feeling she had when she was dancing with Ben. When she broke the kiss to maybe stop since she felt nothing, even in this inebriated state, Armitage had other plans. He continued to kiss her lips, exploring his tongue inside her. She at first was fine with it. Even though she didn't feel anything for him, she didn't want to feel alone. She didn't want to think of a particular someone either. It was getting pretty heavy and while Rey's romantic flame didn't ignite, her alcohol induced lust was starting to take over her better judgment.

Though by some miraculous force inside her, Rey's thoughts were adept enough to bring her down from her high momentarily when she realized he was feeling up her dress to her thighs.

"Hey, let's slow down a bit, okay?" she said breathlessly when they broke from their recent kiss.

"Why? There's nobody around?" he said. He looked at her dominantly and started kissing her neck with purpose.

"No, come on. Let's take a breather for a sec," her common sense was slowly coming back, however, the drowsiness from all the alcohol in her system was also kicking in.

"Come on, Rey. You know I think you're hot and you seem to want to throw yourself at me. Let's just have this one night and we'll go our separate ways," he offered.

Rey wasn't sure if she should take his offer. On one hand, this was wrong. So wrong. On the other… no, it was wrong. She didn't want to play games anymore. She wanted a real relationship. _Remind me to kick Rose's ass for letting me drink this much alcohol,_ she said to herself.

"I'm sorry, Armitage," Rey began. "But-"

"But nothing," he stopped her. "Come on, let's just have some fun."

Suddenly his grip tightened on her. Rey felt cold. She was scared. This was the biggest mistake she's ever made.

Thank her knight in shining armor for showing up at the right moment.

"Hux, get your hands off her," Ben growled behind them.

Ben may not be in the popular crowd of teachers, but he was one of the biggest and built of the men in the school and no one was stupid enough to pick a fight with the varsity football coach. Armitage let Rey go in an instant and Rose pulled her friend in for a protective hug.

"Hey man, I'm not doing anything wrong," he put his hands in the air.

"Yeah you better not have," Ben glared at him. "Now say sorry to Rey."

"I'm sorry," he said through gritted teeth. Then he turned to Ben.

"Solo, who do you think you are anyhow?!" he scowled at the man, trying to size him up.

"The guy who will kick your ass if you so much as take advantage of her or any other woman," Ben answered.

"Is that a threat?!" Armitage's fists balled up at his sides ready to strike his opponent.

"It's a promise," Ben stood his ground. Armitage's already pale skin lost even more color from his colleague's words.

"Ben, stop," Rose warned her friend.

He stepped back a moment after glaring at Hux and motioned for Rose to turn and leave with Rey the opposite direction. Before they walked away, Ben had one more thing to say.

"And if you so much as spread a single rumor about tonight and I find out, I will rearrange your face with my fist," he snarled.

"Go to hell," Hux said stiffly.

Rose was impressed. A little intimated, but impressed that Ben Solo, their quite friend, was so scary to the biggest snob in their faculty. She and Ben walked Rey to the front of the building and had him wait with her while she went to get her car. Rey was stunned by the whole thing that her mind had muddled again, and her reasoning was a bit lost. The alcohol had fulling taken over her system by now and she was drowsier than ever.

"Are you alright?" Ben managed to say as he held Rey in the back seat while Rose drove them all home.

She looked up at him with droopy eyes and before she passed out on his shoulder, lightly grinned.

"My hero."

Ben's lips curved upward in relief. He was so worried about her. So worried that she would get hurt. At least she was safe now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Preview of next chapter: Not Like This
> 
> "I can't believe I wasted a good mistletoe kiss on Hux."
> 
> "Why'd you choose him in the first place, Rey?"
> 
> "I was trying the whole opposites attract thing, remember?"
> 
> "I said you got to find that balance. Find your complement instead."
> 
> "Why can't you just me my complement? It'll make life so much easier."


	8. Not Like This

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Look, I need angst to fuel Rey and Ben up so you know... don't hate me? lol Also, we get another familiar face added to the story!

* * *

_**VIII. ~.Not Like This.~** _

"You sure you got her?" Rose asked Ben as they helped a semi-conscious Rey out of the backseat of her car. The alcohol fully took over her system and Rey was between passed out and in a loopy state.

"Yeah, I'll just put to her to bed and check on her in the morning," Ben said to Rose. "I'll tell her to call you."

"Alright, thanks Ben. And thanks again for helping her out with the Hux thing. I'm really sorry about that. If I'd have known he was as bad as he looked…"

Rose was still feeling terrible since it was her idea for Rey to hit on Armitage. That prick.

"It's all good, Rose. Jerks are jerks. At least we found Rey in time," Ben tried to assure her that no one was to blame for the earlier occurance.

"Well you're her savior for sure. Hope she remembers that in the morning," Rose chuckled. "Goodnight Ben!"

"See ya!" he waved back.

Rose grabbed Rey's purse from the back seat and handed it to Ben and waved off the pair as they walked up to their apartment building. Ben reached her door and fiddled for her keys in her clutch. When he found them and unlocked the door, Rey seemed to have woken up a bit more and realized she was back at home in a familiar place walking straight to her couch to snuggle up with a pillow.

Ben placed her belongings on the counter and headed to the kitchen to grab her a glass of water. He didn't want her to get dehydrated after all the drinking.

"Here drink up please," he handed her the glass. She took it and gulped the whole thing in one sitting. "Feeling better?" he asked.

"My head hurts," she groaned. If anything, her harsh buzz had half disappeared, but she was still a bit tipsy.

"I bet," Ben chuckled. "Come on, you got to get ready for bed and sleep off this intoxication." He gestured towards her bedroom so Rey could sleep off the alcohol.

"No, I don't want to," she whined. Mostly because her head was pounding, and she had not enough strength to move a muscle.

"Rey…" he said sternly.

"Ben…" she whined mockingly.

He laughed a bit. Even when she was drunk, he thought she was adorable.

"Okay, well what do you want to do?" he asked her. He wasn't sure what to do then if Rey didn't want to sleep off her inebriation.

"Stay here with me. Sit," she commanded, albeit a bit sloppily.

Ben did as he was told and sat beside her. She simpered at him, he assumed she was still a bit drunk with that expression. Rey scooted over leaning her head on his shoulder like she always did. He flicked her television on and queued up a random show on her Netflix stream. After a comfortable silence, Ben faintly heard sniffling coming from Rey.

"Hey, what's wrong?" he gently nudged the shoulder she was leaning on to get her attention.

She quickly wiped the phantom tear that escaped from her eye.

"I just… I fucked up, Ben. Didn't I?" she admitted shamefully.

"Why would you say that? You didn't know Armie was an asshole," he tried to comfort.

"No, but I went and got drunk and put stupid trust in this bloke. And what did it leave me in the end? A searing migraine and a night full of regret."

She grabbed at her temples. Her intoxication was still there, she felt it, but at least she was coherent enough to talk. Still, she expected a hangover the following morning.

"Why did I think Armitage would even be a gentleman? He's a jerk inside and out."

"Oh Rey," Ben gently kissed the top of her head. "It's not your fault. You were intoxicated. Everyone makes mistakes. We're human. We move on, alright?"

"Thanks," she muttered, gripping his arm a bit tighter for support. "I just can't believe I wasted a good mistletoe kiss on Hux," she pouted.

He let out a small laugh. At least she wasn't dwelling on her poor choices anymore.

"Yeah well, why'd you choose him in the first place, Rey? He's like the total opposite of the kind of guy I'd think you'd be into."

"I was trying the whole opposites attract thing, remember?"

"Right. But remember I said you got to find that balance. Find your complement instead."

"Why can't you just be my complement? It'll make life so much easier," she scowled at herself, trying to get comfier beside him on the couch. She didn't even realize herself what she blurted aloud just now. She was still somewhat clouded in the head.

Ben on the other hand heard it loud and clear. He wasn't sure if she was meaning everything she was saying, but a part of him felt that the alcohol was more talking than Rey was. He needed to brush that sentiment off his mind. It wasn't real.

"Hux isn't someone you need to mope about for not being compatible. Don't waste your stress on him. Cheer up. You'll meet someone else," he said instead.

"What if I don't? What if I'm wasting my time? Better yet, what if I'm all out of time? I don't remember love being this hard," she moaned pitifully.

"Love's not supposed to be hard, Rey. Well, at least the feeling shouldn't be. When you know, you know, right? Relationships on the other hand…" he tried to lighten the mood.

She looked up at him and smiled. She couldn't have agreed more.

"I know it's not. But this dating game is."

She shrugged in defeat picking at a loose thread on her dress.

"Maybe that's why I read all these love stories and fairytales. Maybe that's why I continue fantasizing… because I want to find a happy ending, even if it's not my own," she sadly confessed.

Ben wrapped an arm around her shoulder to bring her to rest on his chest and sighed, understanding her struggle.

"I get what you're trying to do. Putting yourself out there and trying to find romance. I envy you. I don't have that confidence to do so. Which is why I've been single for over a year now. But it's okay to wait, Rey. You don't need to rush," he said to her.

"I know all about waiting," she whispered. "I'm just tired of it is all. I'm tired of being alone…"

"I know what you mean. But sometimes you have to be alone to appreciate being with someone."

She lifted her head and turned to face him.

"Are you alone, Ben?"

"Yeah," he admitted after a beat. "But I'm alright with that."

"Why? Don't you want to be with someone?"

"Of course I do," he said. He carefully said his next words. "But… it's just not in the cards right now."

"Why not?"

"Don't worry about it," he shrugged.

 _Basically he's saying don't even think about it, Rey. He's not interested._ But she still didn't want to listen to that voice in her head. Blame it on the alcohol for giving her this blind courage, or maybe deep down she couldn't hide it anymore.

"Maybe we don't have to be alone…"

She lazily inched her way closer to his face. As much as Ben had fantasized this for so long, he didn't want to do it. Not like this. He stopped her before she could reach his lips. It took all his might to restrain himself from the heat of the moment.

"Rey… are you still drunk?" he whispered, his breath tickling her lips from the intimacy.

She hesitated. Taking in what exactly she was doing with him.

"Maybe… possibly," she mumbled.

"Rey… we shouldn't do this," he pulled himself gently away from her.

His look of dejection was mistaken by something else. Something else that stirred inside her. Humiliation? Rejection? Either way, it affected her and she wasn't thinking before blurting out her response.

"Isn't this what you want?" she asked him sloppily.

He looked at her again, crushed at what she just said. He knew she was drunk, and it could be contributing to her behavior, but the words still stung.

"No, it's not." He said firmly. He stood up and began shaking his head furiously. It crushed her. "Not like this."

He interpreted it one way, she interpreted it another. This evening was not looking good.

She looked up at him all kinds of confused.

"W-what?"

Ben paced around her living room a bit giving them distance.

"Rey, I would never take advantage of you when you're like this. I'm your best friend, you got to give me some credit," he said to her. Hopefully she wasn't too drunk to understand.

 _Friend_. Right. She forgot about that label between them. Drunk or not, Rey understood clearly what Ben was saying. _Not gonna happen._

"Wow okay, I really hope I'm drunk enough to forget this tomorrow. I'm so embarrassed."

She buried her face in her hands. Her raging migraine was the least of her worries now.

"No, no. don't be, It's alright, Rey. Really. It's fine. Just… It's alright," Ben sighed in defeat.

"No, it's not. I crossed a line. I'm sorry," she grew red in the face, not wanting to look up at him. "I should've known better."

"I just didn't want to take advantage of you…"

"Right."

Rey started to close herself off, he noticed. Ben muttered some obscenity under his breath. He wasn't sure what to say to her or do next. This conversation went south, and he wasn't sure how to salvage it. A silent beat passed between them. Things got extremely awkward for the first time in the two years they've known each other.

"Why don't I get going so you can get some rest okay?" he figured the moment was unsalvageable and the longer he stayed the worse it could get.

"If that's what you want…" she murmured, still refusing to look at him.

"I think it's best if I go."

Ben walked himself to the door and opened it. He turned back around intending to say something but changed his mind. Rey reluctantly got up and made her way to the front, watching as he took a couple steps to unlock his front door.

"Goodnight, Ben." Rey said to him before shutting her door.

He looked at her solemnly and nodded.

"Night, Rey."

She shut the door and leaned against the frame, cursing herself for being such an idiot. A drunk idiot in front of him. A drunk idiot with a one-sided crush.

If there was one thing Rey learned that night, it was that Ben Solo did not see her in a romantic way at all. This was worse than not getting that perfect kiss under the mistletoe. This was worse than going on blind dates to find that spark. Though to be completely honest with herself, the only way that mistletoe kiss would have been perfect was if she shared it with the man who rejected her moments ago.

Love was easy to feel alright, but it was such a cruel bitch.

~.~.~.~

Ben couldn't shake the moment he almost had with Rey. God, he was too much of a coward to make a move on her! But she was drunk. It wouldn't have been right. Although… it really did seem like Rey may have wanted him to kiss her despite her clouded head. _Augh_ , this was frustrating him to no end…

Not two seconds after stepping foot inside his apartment, Ben decided he needed to take a long walk and create more distance from her. He wanted to try to clear his own jumbled head. It was getting tougher to be around Rey. Now more than ever his feelings for her wouldn't stay silent. He missed his chance from the start, not even trying to make a move and ask her out when they first met. Instead, he had been stuck in the friendzone and it seemed like it was too late to get out of it because Rey never saw him as an option when she played the field again.

He was so sure that he was eliciting some signs when he told her that she was his complement. Even then she told him that she was still waiting for a guy to be her true companion. He could've told her before she went on that date with Finn. She asked him if she should go out. But of course he said go for it. Ben was lost. He needed to get over Rey and just move on, play the field himself and find another girl. It was easier said than done and while that should be the best thing to do, he'd never be able to shake this feeling for his best friend.

A half hour later Ben found himself an old shop at a quaint part of town and stood in front of a building. He wasn't sure where he was going or what he was doing, he just felt like being there. The owner of the shop was a longtime family friend. In fact, she was the one who told Ben of the high school coaching job vacancy at Corellia. While he loved coaching those boys, it had been torturing the past two years being so close yet so far from Rey's reach.

Stepping inside the shop, he greeted the familiar face.

"Well if it isn't Ben Solo! It's been quite a while," the old lady behind the counter greeted him upon arrival.

"Hey Maz, yes it has," he walked over and gave her a hug. "I like what you've done to the place. Very festive."

"You know how much I love the Christmas season," the older lady chuckled.

"You and mom both," he joked.

He grabbed a bench and sat at the counter with Maz.

"What are you doing out so late, child?" she was curious.

She was currently stringing popcorn to hang above the store window when finished. Ben decided to help her out and busy himself while they chatted.

"Just came back from a faculty holiday party. Figured I'd say hello."

They continued to craft the garland for a bit in silence. Maz was old, but she wasn't slow. She knew Ben. And while she loved seeing him, she knew he was a private man. His sudden visit this late at night meant something.

"How was your party?"

"It was alright. Nothing special." He was being quiet, keeping his focus on the popcorn.

"Have you met someone yet? Your mother keeps calling me to spy on you, you know. You better get that sorted out before she tells me to play matchmaker. And I don't know many young ladies since I spend most of my time at the bingo hall!" she teased.

"No please don't, Maz," he chuckled. "It's… complicated for me right now. But I'm in a decent place."

 _Bingo._ She figured it out.

"You're always so vague," she shook her head.

He playfully shrugged and continued to string the popcorn.

"Why don't you just tell this 'it's complicated' how you feel?"

He looked up at her shocked.

"You can't fool me, young Solo," she lightly snickered, making him laugh.

"It's not that simple," he informed her.

"Is it?"

"Augh, I don't know," Ben slouched on the counter.

"Tell me why it's not as simple as telling this girl how you feel?" she patted his hand for support.

"I don't think she feels the same way," he mumbled.

"Now why would you say that, Benji? You're a catch!"

Oh Maz, she was just like his mother.

"It's just… we're not in the same social circle I guess."

"So she doesn't give you the time of day?"

"No, we talk to each other all the time."

"Correct me if I'm wrong, as I've been away from school for quite some time," she joked. "But if you talk every day then wouldn't that be the 'same social circle'?"

Ben blew a raspberry and chuckled.

"Okay fine. We're in the same social circle, I guess… But trust me, Maz. She's way out of my league."

"Nonsense," she waved his comment off. "She's got to like you somehow if she talks to you every day."

"Well we're definitely friendly…"

"Then what's the problem?" she wasn't understanding what the struggle was.

Ben let out a breathy sigh.

"We're best friends."

Maz formed a knowing 'o' on her lips, finally getting on the same page as him.

"I still don't see a problem there, Benji," she chuckled and continued to string popcorn.

"Are you kidding? That's a huge problem!" he exclaimed. "I'm stuck in the friendzone and she'll never give me a second glance."

"How do you know that?"

"I just know."

"Benjamin Organa Solo," Maz put her craft project down and took off her eyeglasses to face him. "I've known you since you were in diapers. Your mother didn't raise you to think less of yourself and your father most certainly didn't waste his wisdom giving you nonsense advice like that."

"Yeah, but Maz…"

"But nothing, boy," she stopped him. "There will be no self-deprecation in my store, understood?"

Ben nodded and bowed his head like a little boy. She patted his hand and he looked back up at her.

"If this girl is someone very special to you and you think she's your world, there's nothing else to do than to tell her how you feel."

"But Maz… she's literally the most beautiful, smartest, kindest person I've ever met. And I'm just me. When does a guy like me ever get a chance to get with a girl like her?"

"What has your father - the biggest idiot I know, but also the most charming man - taught you about that?"

She stared him down and he sighed, laughing a bit.

"Never tell me the odds…"

"Exactly, my boy," she nodded approvingly. "Don't deprive yourself of something that could bring you immense joy just because you're scared. You'll never know, maybe she likes you back."

"I know she does, but only as a friend. As for romantic love? I doubt it."

"If she says she does, then she does. It's as real as the feelings you feel, dear child."

Ben had to think about what Maz had said. She was right. What else was there to do to fix his heartache other than to tell Rey how he felt. It was the only way to find out her feelings as well.

"Alright, say I do decide to man up and tell her how I feel…" he trailed off.

Maz waited for him to continue but Ben was lost in thought.

"You _will_ man up and tell her, Ben," Maz urged.

"Okay, okay," he gave in. "Fine I will. But…"

"Oh goodness," Maz rolled her eyes. "You're just as stubborn as your father," she laughed.

"No, no," Ben chuckled. "You're right. I should tell her, and I will tell her don't worry. But…"

Again, he trailed off.

"Are you trying to figure out how to tell her?" Maz asked.

"Yeah," Ben nodded. "She's just… Rey's special and I don't want to just walk up to her and express how I feel. I can tell you so many ways how that can go wrong and it starts with me stuttering and saying the wrong thing. I've bottled this up for two years… I don't know how to express everything to her."

"How well do you know her?"

"We're best friends," he said. "Practically know each other more than we know ourselves."

"That's great," Maz exclaimed. "Then you know her well enough to express how you feel in the way that she'll truly be touched."

"Well she is an English lit teacher…"

"Didn't you study English at the university?"

"Mhm," he acknowledged.

"Then boy, you better woo her with the right words," Maz laughed. "Write her a poem or a letter."

"I was thinking that," Ben agreed. "But..."

"Solo, one more 'but' out of you and I'm kicking out in the cold!" Maz warned him.

"No, this is a good 'but'. I swear!" he defended.

"Alright, what is it?"

"I also want to find her gift. You know, because it's Christmas and she loves the holiday."

"Now _that_ I can help you with," Maz smiled. She placed her craft down and guided him further down her shop in search for the perfect gift.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Preview of next chapter: Midnight Kiss
> 
> "Can't decide between the two?"
> 
> "I can't decide whether I want my sugar in cake form or biscuit form," she joked.
> 
> "Pick the cookies. They're much better."
> 
> "Okay, you're right. These are delicious."
> 
> "I hope so. I brought them," he chuckled. "I'm Beaumont."


	9. Midnight Kiss

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I'm going to warn you again, someone will be making stupid choices tonight. Give her a break, alright? She's just confused. And by the end of the night... well, I'll just let you read this next chapter ;)

* * *

_**IX. ~.Midnight Kiss.~** _

The blunder she made during and after the faculty holiday party had cast a shadow of guilt and embarrassment on Rey. She didn't even feel in the festive spirit on the actual holiday herself. While she didn't have a family to go home to, she had gotten acquainted with the folks in her apartment building. It was a lovely community and on every major holiday, tenants gathered in the main lobby to celebrate together. This year Rey had chosen to avoid the celebration, for obvious reasons even if it was her favorite holiday. Ben usually spent his holidays upstate with his family but would always make an appearance at the apartment building's functions. Knowing that, Rey opted to tag along with Rose to her family's home over the holidays to avoid her neighbor completely. She really didn't want to see him. Of all the things to feel ashamed the most it was her impish decision to throw herself at a man who clearly wasn't interested in her. She needed to get over this slump and just move on. Ben was off limits. He made it very clear that night.

When she arrived home late the day after Christmas, she shut off all her lights and avoided him like the plague. She hid in her dimly lit apartment for a day hoping he wouldn't knock on her door. She wasn't even sure if he was looking for her. He was probably ignoring her too. What with the way she invaded his personal space and basically ruined whatever relationship they had. What she hated most about what she did was the one thing that she didn't want to mess up if she ever were to be in a relationship with him – ruin their friendship. After a couple of days, it was evident to Rey that Ben was ignoring her as well. They couldn't go back to being friends just yet. Maybe in time they could. But for now, she lost him.

New Year's Eve had finally arrived, and Rey could not be more excited to ring in the new year with a (hopefully) fresh start. There were wounds that needed to be healed but she was looking forward to focusing her mind to her job and start anew. The agenda for the evening was to have a bowl of popcorn, a glass – okay, a bottle – of wine, and a pair of fuzzy flannel pajamas for a comfortable night in. She made cozy on her couch and flipped her TV on. Lucky for her (or was it?), _The Princess Bride_ was airing on the holiday network. Despite her wanting to forget about love, Rey would never pass up the opportunity to watch her favorite novel turned movie.

She really thought this past month when she opened her eyes and saw some signs she didn't usually see before that maybe just maybe Ben was the Westley to her Buttercup. Like how he was the nicest sweetest man she's ever met. Ben went out of his way to help Rey whenever she needed something. He was always smiling at her, always happy to see her, always selflessly put her first. She didn't realize that until recently.

She noticed a lot of things as of late. Like how Ben had grown to be a bit more confident over the years. Sure, he was easy to talk to when he was around her and Rose, but she noticed that Ben had been trying to be more social, if not at least in front of her, Rose and Mitaka. Was he, like Westley, trying to build up his courage to be 'worthy' of Rey? She wished.

Though it's not like Rey tried to do the same thing once upon a time...

When they first met, Rey spent a whole month learning about American football to impress Ben and to take interest in his passions. To be perfectly honest, she was besotted with him the first time she saw him. He was soft on the eyes but had a determined face. He smiled at her and she had forgotten how to breathe. She needed to get to know him and find her way into his heart. She figured liking something he liked would help her out. However, her quick knowledge of the sport may have been mistaken as a bonding moment for friends instead of a girl trying to impress a guy in order to like her back. The efforts didn't go fully to waste because since then Rey had something to talk to Ben about. Eventually, she realized she had put herself in the friendzone and moved on with her fantasies of being anything more with him. Better friends than nothing at all, right?

But there was always a part of her that wondered if she was over thinking. A part of her wondered if he'd ever feel the same. Why didn't Ben want to kiss her? Did he not feel the same way, even the tiniest bit? Even when they'd have super intimate moments? Even when they practically acted like a couple? Did he really not feel anything but platonic love for her?

_"You truly love each other and so you might have been truly happy. Not one couple in a century has that chance, no matter what the story books say. And so, I think no man in a century will suffer as greatly as you will."_

_Yeah well… you and me both, buddy._ Rey toasted the man in black on the screen who was strapped to a table and being sucked of life. Buttercup was betrothed to the prince, much to Westley's dismay. Much like her and Ben, well… Rey wasn't his princess. Had she too sucked away two years of her life for this unrequited love?

To save her from an emotional roller coaster she was on, she heard a knock on her door.

 _Crap_. Did she have her TV on too high? She couldn't talk to Ben. She wasn't ready.

"Rey? I know you're in there! It's Rose," she heard her friend's voice muffled from the other side of the door.

With a sigh of relief, she got up and went to the door. Checking the peep hole to make sure she was alone and that Ben's door was closed, she quickly opened the door and yanked her friend inside, shutting it just as fast as she opened it.

"Hey- whoa!" Rose almost got winded from the sudden pull.

Rey promptly locked her door and turned around. "Hey," she said simply.

"Okay, you're more odd than usual," Rose said of her friend's bizarre behavior.

"Sorry. I was just planning on spending an evening alone. I got startled when there was someone at the door," she played it cool walking back to her couch.

"Yeah, no. You're not staying in. We're going out. Go get dressed," Rose instructed her.

"Rose no. I'm done with the party scene. I'm done going out," she tried to get out of it.

"Are you kidding me?! It' New Year's Eve! Your midnight kiss is waiting for you. Don't tell me that's not romantic because it is. That's when Ezra and I kissed for the first time."

"No, no it certainly is a perfect setting," Rey had to agree. "But I've had such a string of bad luck… I just don't want to be disappointed again… or hurt another poor bloke."

"Oh boo-hoo. Armitage was a fluke, Finn wasn't adventurous enough, and Poe's hubris didn't hide his daft personality," Rose pointed out. "Don't feel bad. You're still a catch and there's still some cutie you can kiss tonight."

"Why must you mock my pain, woman?!" Rey buried her face on a throw pillow.

"Life is pain, Rey. But only the strong keep going," Rose patted her head.

She never told Rose about her awkward evening with Ben after the holiday party. She just didn't want to admit to anyone how much she messed up with him.

"Rose, I'm really not feeling it," she sighed miserably.

Rose saw that Rey was feeling dejected that her last three conquests to find guys to kiss did not work out. She didn't really understand, apart from the last guy, why they didn't work out, but they didn't. She just hoped Rey wouldn't give up so easily. Rey had a big heart and she would waste it if she just stayed at home to mope.

"Which is exactly why you should go out," Rose said. "Who cares about the conquest? Just focus on having fun. This year wasn't the greatest for you in the love department and this past month alone you've been so disappointed with all these men in your life. Let's say goodbye to this year and kick off the new year with a new attitude. Are you with me, Niima?" Rose encouraged.

"I guess it wouldn't hurt for one last hurrah," Rey was starting to get swayed. "I'll probably join a nunnery next year and just go celibate since I'll forever be alone."

"You know for a hopeless romantic, my god you are so depressing sometimes," Rose rolled her eyes at her friend. "Go get ready!"

After a bit more convincing, Rey eventually agreed and went with Rose to a party at her friend's apartment recreation hall. Just like her apartment building, Rose also had a friendly community who celebrated holidays together. Rey was hesitant at first, what with knowing that Finn was her neighbor. Though Rose assured her that Finn was out of town to visit family for the holidays. Then again, if Rey had to choose the more awkward run in, she wouldn't have mind running into Finn more than running into Ben. At least she had no feelings for the former.

"See, told you it would be chill tonight, right?" Rose asked her as they sipped flutes of champagne.

"It's better than a bar that's for sure," Rey agreed.

"Look sweetie, I know I joke but I do care about you. I'm sorry those dates didn't work out with any of those guys."

When Rose had her moments, she was a true friend.

"It's alright Rose. I mean, maybe it was good for me to try to date again, but clearly it's a sign that maybe I'm not really ready to go back out there."

"Or maybe you just didn't meet the right guy yet. Don't give up. There's still that midnight kiss remember?" Rose was hopeful for the two of them.

"I don't know," she swished her drink around her glass. "I guess if I meet someone here, sure… but after tonight I'm going to just put a pin in the notion of this perfect kiss."

"If that's what you want. Maybe you should just casually date for now."

"No, I'm going to just take a break from all that for a bit," she informed her friend.

"Oh alright, I won't push," Rose gave her friend a hug.

They continued to lightly chat when Rose's phone rang. Ezra was calling to wish her a happy new year. It was sweet, her friend's relationship with her husband. The man wasn't home often since he served in the front lines, but he made an effort to call Rose as often as possible. It was just past 11 PM and where Ezra was stationed it was well past midnight and into the early morning. But he called Rose and made sure to be on the phone with her until the clock struck midnight where they were. Rey excused herself for a bit to give Rose some alone time with her husband and made her way to the snack table at the corner of the room.

She was debating whether to munch on the sugar cookies or brownies that Rose brought, wanting a sweet snack to indulge her sullenness.

"Can't decide between the two, huh?"

She turned and a man with kind eyes and a baby face was standing beside her.

"Yeah. I can't decide whether I want my sugar in cake form or biscuit form," she lightly joked.

"That's your dilemma?" he chuckled. "I can't decide between reindeers or snowmen! Pick the cookies. They're much better."

Rey nodded and picked up a snowman cookie to take a bite.

"Okay, you're right. These are delicious," she nodded in approval.

"I hope so. I brought them," he smirked.

"Ah so it's not really a fair judgment. Biased much?" she kidded.

"I won't brag about anything else but my cookies," he laughed. "I'm Beaumont."

He held his hand out for her.

"Rey," she smiled and shook his hand.

"So, do you live in this building, Rey? I've been here for almost five years, but I don't recognize you."

"No, I'm here with my friend. She lives on the third floor. Her name is Rose Tico."

"Oh Rose! Of course! She's the one with the husband in the military, correct?"

"Yeah, Ezra."

"We love Ezra. He's the nicest guy here. Always a great guy to talk to when he's home from deployment."

"Yeah, she got lucky with him," Rey said of her friend.

"So, it's just you and Rose here tonight?" he asked, sounding hopeful.

"Yeah-"

"Rey! Hey!"

Rey and Beaumont twisted their heads around.

"Mitaka?" she was surprise to see a familiar face. "I didn't know you live here."

"I just moved in a couple months ago actually," he said to her. "Hey Beau," he greeted his neighbor.

"Doph, what's up, man?" Beaumont shook his hand. "Ah so you know two tenants here," he said to Rey.

"To be fair, I didn't know Mitaka lived here," she chuckled. "And I'm almost sure Rose didn't know either."

"Like I said, it's barely been two months," he laughed. "I didn't know Rose lived here either until I saw her at the mailbox yesterday."

"How do you two know each other?" Beaumont pointed a finger between the two.

"The three of us are teachers at Corella High," she explained.

"Well, she and Rose are teachers. I'm just the assistant coach for the football team," Mitaka corrected. "We don't do nearly as much work as they do," he joked.

"Oh please! You and Ben are responsible for taking the boys to the championship game!" Rey praised him.

"Hey, speaking of Ben. Have you seen him?" he wondered.

"Uh…" Rey wasn't sure how to answer that. Mitaka of course knew that Rey and Ben were neighbors, but until recently they hadn't hung out since before Christmas. She wasn't sure how to answer his question.

"I came here alone actually. Rose invited me," she decided to say.

"No, I know," Mitaka said. "Ben came with me, but I lost him in the crowd." He scratched the side of his head scanning the room for the tall man. "Figured since he's always around you and Rose at school you might have seen him."

Rey suddenly grew nervous. Ben was at the same party?! That was the one thing she wanted to avoid tonight at her own apartment's gathering. They surely must be trying to avoid one another if they went so far as to not be at their homes that evening.

"I'm not really sure. Haven't seen him yet," she said plainly.

Mitaka eyed her a bit oddly but chose to dismiss whatever he was going to say about it. They were in mixed company after all.

"Well if you see him let him know I'm looking for him, alright? Happy New Year, Rey! You too, Beau!"

When Mitaka left, Rey stood silent for a bit. She didn't even realize Beaumont was still standing there.

"Rey? You alright?" his voice shook her from her thoughts.

"What? Yeah, sorry," she shrugged off her thoughts.

It didn't take a genius to see that something was bothering her. Rey's eyes said it all.

"Do… uh, do you want to talk about it?" he offered.

She grabbed some more cookies and gestured for him to sit next to her on a nearby bench. Beaumont grabbed two champagne glasses along with his own handful of cookies and joined her.

"I'm kind of in a grey area right now," she muttered after taking a bite of her cookie.

"How so?"

"There's this guy…"

"The one you and Doph were talking about?" Beaumont guessed.

"Is it that obvious?" she asked.

"Well…" he timidly shrugged.

They both chuckled.

"It's just… complicated, I guess. But we're not in good terms right now."

They ate their dessert a bit more in silence. Then Beaumont sighed.

"If it makes you feel any better, I don't think it's any worse than me. I just got dumped by my ex-girlfriend yesterday. We couldn't even make it to the new year," he sadly smiled.

"Well I'm moping over a guy I was never in a relationship with, how that for sad?"

"Ah of course," he nodded as if he solved their issues. "And we come to a party trying to feel less lonely, but we've never felt more alone, am I right?"

"I'll drink to that," she lightly touched glasses with him and took a sip. "Why didn't it work out with you and your ex? If you don't mind me asking."

"I'm not sure," he shrugged. "I guess eventually the spark faded over time and Kaydel and I realized we weren't the one for each other."

"See, that's what I'm afraid of," Rey said. "Actually, I'm more afraid I'll never get to feel that spark."

"You think you and this guy might have it?"

"I mean… I want to believe we do."

"You haven't tried to find out?"

Rey stayed silent for a moment and gathered her thoughts.

"Have you ever decided not to pursue a relationship with someone because you were so afraid of losing what you already had with them?" she asked seriously.

"I mean," Beaumont breathily sighed. "At first, maybe. But what's the point in that if you're stopping yourself from happiness?"

"How do you know it'll be happiness?"

"That's a risk you've got to ask yourself that you're willing to take," he said. "Kaydel and I were friends at first, then we fell into a relationship for three years. And you're right, you don't know if it'll be happiness or if it will last. But even though we broke up, those three years were so worth it."

Rey thought about what he said. She would've loved the idea of falling in love and being in a relationship with her best friend. That was textbook romance. But did she want to risk the sad outcome like Beaumont had with Kaydel on her own terms with Ben? She still didn't know if she could. But she sure as heck wanted to find out.

As if he were reading her mind, in the flesh Ben appeared at the other end of the room. She hadn't seen him in over a week, and all of her feelings for him surged in her chest. Mitaka had found him and they were mingling with his wife and a couple of folks Rey didn't recognize. Mitaka had said something to Ben in private for a moment – probably that she was there. It was most likely the case because a second later he whipped his head to her direction, and they locked eyes.

For a moment, it felt like they were the only two people in the room. Never mind the noisy crowd, it was almost stark silence in his eyes. Never mind that it was a half hour to midnight, it was as if time had stood still and they were making up for the week they spent apart.

Rey desperately wanted to go up to him brave faced and pour out her heart. To tell him that he was her Westley. That they were joined by the bonds of love; that not even a thousand swords could break it. She wanted to tell Ben that he was her complement and she'd want nothing more than to be his. But she'd committed already that this was a one way passion and she guarded her heart so as to not let him break it. Maybe it was all her fault. Maybe she was over-thinking and taking the notions in her head way too seriously. If she would just listen to her heart and put herself out there, maybe just maybe Ben would feel the same. Despite knowing the circumstances, she was repeating the same mistake every time by not saying anything to him... And each time she was hurting herself.

Little did Rey know that Ben was feeling the exact same way. His undying love for her. His despairing plea to be someone she would take a second glance toward. Ben so desperately wanted to be even just considered a potential suitor. It was his own fault getting comfortable in the friendzone, pushing her to date those guys. But Ben knew in his heart that no other guy could give her that fairytale but him. No other guy would love her the way he did. No other guy would give her that passionate kiss she so deserved. His whole world revolved around her, his whole mind, spirit and body yearned for her. His arms craved her warm touch, his ears longed for her infectious laugh, and his knees shook with blind affection. He was head over heels for her, and she didn't even know.

Should he have called or knocked on her door the next day or at least sent a "Merry Christmas" text over the holiday? Probably, but the coward in him thought against it. He avoided her, gave her space and hid in the shadows. Ben knew how much time he was wasting – he wasn't even sure who's time really; his own tomfoolery or her own eventual rejection towards him. Would he ever get the chance to tell her how he felt, or would he let another man take his place and forever lose her? There she was, twenty feet away. All he needed was the bravery to take a step towards her direction.

Rey had seriously considered leaving Beaumont for a second and gather some courage to talk to Ben. To walk across the room and just end her misery once and for all. Ben seemed to hesitate as well, deciding whether to acknowledge her, or go about this unspoken avoidance they both have been dancing around since the holiday party.

However, just like before, Rey's intentions had betrayed her.

Even before Ben or Rey could make any kind of move, some woman in Mitaka's group walked up to Ben and whispered something in his ear. Now, Rey realized during the Christmas party that she in fact had a jealous side, but it was only ignited if it had to do with Ben. Save for the fact that this woman was just a friend of Ben's and not someone interested in him in the romantic sense. But the growing rage inside of her was about ready to snap and make wrong choices again. Ben, Mitaka and their little group began to walk towards another direction, the woman walking with her arm looped around his.

_That bitch._

Beaumont noticed that Rey was looking over his shoulder to something behind him and when he finally turned around, he didn't see anything but a random group of people walking to another part of the room.

"Whatcha looking at?" he wondered.

He turned back to Rey and something in her eyes told him that she was again lost in thought. It was most likely about this guy, but instead of sadness there was a sharper, deeper emotion. He wasn't sure though what to call it.

"N-nothing, I thought I saw someone," she said, her words full of poison, but Beaumont didn't seem to notice.

He looked at her and smiled. That did it for her.

Beaumont was a nice guy, he really was. It was as if he took on the traits of the other men she had tried to date in the past month. He was attractive like Poe, was easy to talk to like Finn, and although she hated to admit liking one nice quality of her vile of a colleague, was respectful like Armitage (well, to an extent). Was he Ben? Of course not. No one would ever compare to him. But he was there, he was noticing her, and he was helping her feel less lonely.

It was nearing midnight and Rey and Beaumont managed to finish the bottle of champagne they were nursing with the rest of the desserts. They made a comfortable nest at the benches and personal space became almost non-existent. Rose had stopped by a bit after she saw Ben and noticed the excessive laughing and arm touching Rey was doing with Beaumont. Whether it was genuine attraction or just drinking her feelings away, she figured her best friend needed one night to let loose and forget about her problems.

As if it were a repeat of the Christmas party, Rey found herself mindlessly kissing another man at the stroke of midnight. She was losing herself in her need for companionship over passion and letting her clouded thoughts take over. Only this time she was in control, and Beaumont wasn't Armitage. He was confident, but respectful. He was hurting too, and she was doing him a favor. It didn't matter that they weren't feeling a spark. They wanted to comfort each other however way they could.

Beaumont's kisses grew heavy as he brushed his tongue on her lips to gain access for more. He began to kiss her neck with her sweet spot being tickled and delicate sounds were slipping from her mouth.

In truth, Rey's mind was muddled, and she was thinking of Ben – the passion, the anger, the frustration. She felt that intense guttural feeling inside her and mistook sparks with this man that she just met for the other one she saw moments ago. But Rey wanted to forget him. She was trying to forget him. She hoped if she kissed Beaumont some more that she would eventually get clouded and take this man who was sucking on her collarbone up to his apartment to forget him. At least he wasn't a jerk like Hux. At least he was kind. He was reciprocating the same lustful desires. He was filling her void.

He continued to kiss a trail from her neck back up her jaw, sending tiny whimpers out of her lips. This lethargic feeling of getting lost in the moment was exactly what she wanted. To be free of her thoughts. To be in the moment. To be with this stranger. To forget about him.

Then suddenly, in the heat of the moment, she mumbled his name.

" _Ben_."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Preview of next chapter: Clarity
> 
> "Sweetie, you're not looking for a relationship because you're already in one."
> 
> "What are you talking about? I'm not in a relationship."
> 
> "Maybe not officially. But you're not single. Your heart's already taken."
> 
> "By who?"
> 
> "Who else? Ben."


	10. Clarity

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I apologize for the delay. Dealing with personal issues and work engagements at the moment. I'll be posting this chapter and the final chapter today since you waited longer than intended.
> 
> Rose has been more or less a neutral character so hopefully you don't hate her for bringing in so many men. She doesn't know Rey wants Ben and vice versa. Fear not, Rose is best friends to both of them and her character is just awesome. Let her be worthy of your thoughts this chapter!

* * *

_**X. ~.Clarity.~** _

School was back in session come the first week of January. Rey spent the entire weekend before that purging herself of the mess of the past month she had with Poe, Finn, Armitage, Beaumont, and especially Ben. Unfortunately, nothing came out of her conquest to find her perfect guy to give her the perfect, spark feeling, foot popping kiss. So much for that one true love…

This was a new year, a clean slate in which Rey decided to stay single for a little while longer. There was no use wasting her time in the 'dating game' anymore since it didn't do her any good. Someday her fairytale would happen. Until then, it was back to her romance novels.

Rey and Rose were coming back from the teacher's lounge during free period to the English lit teacher's classroom to lounge around for a bit. Since it was the first week back, many students used free period to catch up on homework, studying, or extra-curriculars. Much to their surprise, the pair had actual free time for the next hour - no papers to grade or anything. When they reached the classroom, Rey walked straight to the television mounted on the wall on the far side of the space to turn it on. It was the only reason they'd lounge in her classroom over Rose's – she had a TV with Wi-Fi connection. Rose picked up a dry erase marker and started drawing little flowers along the corner of the whiteboard while she waited for the television to come to life.

"So, are you sure you don't want me to try to set you up with anyone else? I feel really bad and I just need to redeem myself as your best friend and find you at least a decent guy," she said to her friend.

Rey lightly sighed, logging in to her streaming account before she replied to her friend.

"It's alright, Rose. It's not your fault. I don't even think it's any of the guys' faults either. It's just me and my ridiculous far-fetched ideas of romance."

"It's not ridiculous, it's passionate," she said to her friend.

"Either way, I've wasted pretty much a year and came up single still."

"Girl, sometimes it'll take a year, maybe more to find that someone."

"Marvelous," Rey said sarcastically.

"Be snippy all you want, but you know I'm right. This is just the beginning and you'll be disappointed even more if you're not going to stay open minded about it," Rose said.

"Way to put me down when I'm hurting, Rose," Rey scowled. "While you're at it, why don't you give me a nice paper cut and pour lemon juice on it?!"

Rey set the remote down for a second and turned to her friend, who thankfully wasn't fazed by her crabby response.

"Sweetie, I'm not trying to hurt your feelings. I'm just trying to tell you the truth. I'm on your side. I want you to be happy. And I'll help you for however long it takes or if you even want my help anymore," she offered.

"I'm sorry, Rose. I know you mean well. And thank you. I really don't know what I'd do without you."

Rose capped her marker and went over to give her best friend a hug.

"You'd be watching sappy movies eating ice cream on your couch, that's what," she teased her friend.

Rose handed her the coffee she put down and the two women briefly toasted their friendship before going about their time. Rey turned her attention back to the television screen and began to queue up a random baking show while Rose mindlessly fiddled with the random items in the classroom.

"Hey what's that on your desk?" she pointed with the hand holding her own beverage.

Neither of them had even noticed the small object simply decorated with a red bow in the middle of her mahogany desk.

"Huh?"

Rey glanced over to her workstation in front of the whiteboard and sure enough there was something sitting atop the table. She walked up to her desk and when she got a closer look at the object in question, she almost spit out her coffee.

"Whoa, girl. You alright?" Rose said when Rey made a gagging motion.

Rey handed Rose her mug in a hurry and stepped even closer to the table.

She couldn't believe her eyes. On her desk was a very old, weathered copy of a first edition paperback of her favorite novel.

"What kind of a book is that?" Rose peered over her shoulder when Rey picked said object up delicately.

"It's _The Princess Bride_ ," Rey barely said above a whisper.

"Really?" her friend raised an inquisitive brow. "The lady with the skulls and sex symbol is your Buttercup chick?" Rose was not convinced.

She lightly traced the spine, felt the worn in pages just to make sure she was really holding it.

"This is a first edition copy that they made and sold for only two weeks because the artist who created it didn't know the story. He just knew it was a fantasy novel, so he drew something generic," she shared with her friend.

"Yeah. Good choice. I would never think to read that book for fairytales and true love's kisses," Rose chuckled. "Wait, don't you have like a dozen copies of that book already?"

"Not this one. This one's… pretty rare," Rey said still unconvinced she was in possession of it.

"I don't understand the importance of getting more than one copy of a book," Rose said while sipping her coffee. "I mean I love _Game of Thrones,_ but I only have one set of the books and one set of the Blu-rays. That's enough for me."

"I've been searching for this one for quite some time," Rey ogled at the cover and its unique graphics.

"Well, how'd you get it?" Rose wondered.

Rey came back from her amazement and realized she didn't know how it got to her desk, let alone who put it there. It wasn't until seconds later that she noticed a tiny white envelope resting on the tabletop with her name on it.

She didn't even need to guess that penmanship. His all too familiar scratchy handwriting needn't be identified.

 _Ben_.

Her heart began to race. How did he get this book? She opened the envelope and pulled out a folded note.

_**You mentioned that you were looking for the first edition two-week cover of The Princess Bride. Found it for you…** _

_**This is my favorite book in all the world, though I have never read it. But it makes you smile, so it's my favorite.** _

She traced the ink-dried words on the note and placed the card delicately on her desk as if it were just as fragile as this book. She opened the cover to the first page and found another inscription…

_**As You Wish.** _

_**-Ben** _

Her heart fluttered at the simple phrase. The one Westley would say to Buttercup. The one that meant so much more. She knew he knew what it meant. They talked about it's significance before. Could this mean he meant it the same way too? She brought the book to her chest, pressing it close to her heart and lightly sighed.

"It was Ben."

She formed a crooked grin on her lips and turned to Rose.

"Wow, Ben got you this?" her friend was impressed. "That was nice of him."

"I can't believe he found it."

Rey's smile grew bigger. A pure smile; one that Rose had never seen on her before because it was a smile of a woman in-

Suddenly it all became clear to her.

"Wow," Rose said to herself in realization. She blew a raspberry and chuckled. "I can't believe I missed that."

"Missed what?" Rey looked at her with a curious frown.

"I get it," Rose slowly nodded at her friend.

"Get what?" Rey was utterly confused.

"I _so_ get it."

"Rose…"

"Why it didn't work out with any of the other guys," she said as a matter of fact.

"Care to enlighten me because I'm still not sure myself."

Rey placed the book down, crossed her arms and gave her attention to Rose.

"Oh, my sweet summer child," Rose teased her friend.

"Rose, focus!"

She grabbed at Rose's shoulders to get her to stop with the jokes. This was a serious matter and if Rose had an answer for it all, she wanted to know.

"Sweetie, you're not looking for a relationship because you're already in one," Rose explained simply.

"What are you talking about? I'm not in a relationship," Rey was still unsure what she was trying to say.

"Maybe not officially. But you're not single. Your heart's already taken."

"By who?"

"Who else? _Ben_."

"Ben?" She repeated. "' _Ben'_ , Ben?"

"Yes, he's the only Ben I know actually," Rose giggled.

That couldn't be it, could it? She never admitted to Rose that she had a crush on Ben when he first got hired at Corellia. She even considered him as a potential suitor when Rose mentioned it the first night she met Poe but never acted on it. The thing was they became such fast friends that that was all it was… they were friends. Stuck in the friendzone. It was better that way. She liked having someone in her life like Ben. At least she hoped after the Christmas fiasco he'd still want to be in her life somehow. Even if it were only as a friend. But this gift… she was even more confused than ever.

"Ben Solo?" Rey's heart began to race. "Why would you think that?"

Rose once again laughed. Was her friend really that clueless?

"I don't know. Maybe because he's smitten over you too."

As much as she wanted to believe Rose, she knew that was not the case. It would never be the case.

"No, he's not. He's just being friendly," she tried to dismiss the notion.

"Yes, he is!" Rose exclaimed. "It's so obvious now that I think about it."

Her eyes shot up at her friend instantly.

"It is?"

Rose frowned at her as if she asked the stupidest question.

"Rey, you can't possibly be telling me that you didn't see the signs."

"Rose, we're just friends," she once again tried to stand her ground. No, she would not get her hopes up knowing she'll just lead herself to more pain.

"And that's why you two refuse to admit anything. Because you're 'just friends'," She air quoted. "But if you didn't label yourselves that, tell me the truth, would you be interested in him?"

Rey stayed silent. Uncomfortably silent. For a long time. It was then that Rose understood just about everything and grinned like Cheshire cat.

"Rey… Is there something you want to tell me?"

Her friend looked at her with doe-eyes, but Rose's infectious smile cracked her.

"I've always been interested in him," she mumbled.

There it was. The truth finally came out.

"Oh my gawwwwd! Really?!" Rose wailed, crushing Rey into a bear hug and giggled.

"I've had a crush on him since his first day here," she confessed. "But he made it clear that we were just going to be friends."

"That was two years ago," Rose pointed. "I'm sure you two can try going out. Wait, weren't you sort of just starting to date Cal?"

"Yeah, but if Ben asked me out, I would've dumped Cal for him in a heartbeat-"

She cut off her own sentence to look at her friend's bewildered expression.

"Girl you got it bad!" she said giddily. At least one of them was having fun with this.

"Rose, he's not into me. Trust me. I know he's not," Rey shook her head gravely. She was trying hard not to psyche herself up. Rose didn't know the whole story.

"Why would you even say that?"

Rey let out a deep sigh. It was probably time to spill everything.

"I've given him so many chances to hit on me, but it seems to go over his head. Either that or what I believe is that he doesn't see me in the romantic sense."

"I don't know," Rose tapped her chin pondering out loud. "Now that I think about it, he has been acting weird lately. Ever since… oh my gosh!"

"What?"

"Rey, ever since you got back into the dating game Ben's been acting so weird around you! Why didn't I think about it before?!" Rose squealed. "Actually, I did but you shot that down too. See, this is why he doesn't make a move on you," she pestered her.

"I'm so confused," Rey furiously rubbed her temples.

"You try to give him chances, but he doesn't see them. He probably does the same thing and you don't see it either. Either that or he's doing it subtly but you both just won't open your eyes!"

Rey was about ready to defend herself, but a note struck and she contemplated Rose's words seriously.

"That's… a possibility. Would explain a couple things," she mumbled the last part to herself.

"A couple things?!" Rose grew wide-eyed. "Okay sweetie, spill. Now!"

"Well…" Rey hesitated at first then gave in. "Okay, you know my date with Poe?"

"Mhm."

"After the kiss and I didn't feel anything, I walked home by myself and ran into Ben."

"You did?"

"Yeah. We were just goofing around and then he offered his umbrella to share and we walked home together. I think he was flirting with me…"

"I can probably say he was," Rose chortled.

"And with Finn…"

"Wait, there's more?"

"Yeah," Rey said. "With Finn, I asked Ben while you were on the phone with Ezra if I should go out with Finn and he kind of danced around the subject but told me if there was nothing standing in the way to go out with him. So, I did."

"You are the biggest idiot ever," Rose deadpanned her friend.

"Thanks, you're such a great best friend," Rey said sarcastically.

"I'm serious Rey!" Rose laughed. "Are there any more Ben moments?"

"Lots," she confessed.

"Alright, I'm going to get comfy," Rose set her mug down and planted herself on Rey's desk chair, feet resting atop the counter. "You're going to tell me everything."

Rey leaned back on her desk next to Rose's feet and continued to share everything. Might as well get comfortable too.

"Okay… um… so after my date with Finn I stopped by Ben's apartment and his niece was over."

"Aww I didn't know Ben had a niece," Rose cooed.

"She's adorable. And Ben is such a great uncle to her," Rey smiled to herself, recalling how much fun she had with Ben and Ahsoka that night.

Rose noticed this and smirked.

"Ahsoka kept saying that Ben would talk about me a lot to his relatives and it made me curious, but he dismissed it saying it wasn't a big deal."

"Not a big deal, my ass," Rose cackled.

"Then we talked after she went to bed. He was talking to me about opposites and complements and even said that's why we got along so well because we complement each other."

"Tell me you saw that sign!"

"I didn't know what to think of it at the moment!"

"Oh, sweet baby Jesus," Rose face palmed hard on her forehead.

"And… okay just please don't scream in this next one okay?" Rey already winced before sharing the next bit.

"No promises," Rose chuckled.

"Augh… okay, at the Christmas party when you were trying to talk me up to Armitage, I glanced over your shoulder and saw Gwen Phasma stupidly hitting on Ben and I don't know, something came over me and that's why I got drunk and did that stupid thing with Hux."

"WHAT?!" Yep, Rose screamed.

"Yeah, I mean we were dancing before that and I don't know… I felt something. It was a gut feeling and it made my chest heavy. I thought we were having a moment maybe, but I was confused because I ruled Ben out of this finding the perfect kiss thing. I ruled him out ever since we became best friends…"

"Damn, Rey. That sounds like a spark to me!" Rose pointed out.

She was flabbergasted. Everything Rey was saying to her just aided in making the picture crystal clear.

Rey neither denied nor confirmed what her friend said and continued to share everything.

"Which is why on New Year's Eve… shit, I can't believe I'm going to share this with you… Ah no I can't…"

"No, no, no! You can't just say that and not tell me. Come on woman! Speak!" she demanded.

"What am I your pet?" Rey tried to joke.

"My mother's dog with cataracts would see the signs better than you right now!"

"Hurtful!" Rey feigned upset.

"Okay enough with the stalling. What happened with Beau on New Year's Eve? You kissed him, right?"

"Yeah."

"But you didn't feel anything."

"No."

"Because… of Ben?"

"…Yeah."

"Mhm. Mhm. What happened? Did you go over to his place afterwards and talk again? Because the pattern after every one of your failed kisses is you running into Ben's arms for comfort," Rose pointed out.

"No, it's not," she said.

"Rey, come on…" Rose said obviously.

"Well this time I didn't go to Ben, so your reasoning is a bit flawed," she tried to sound smart, but it wasn't helping her case.

"What happened then?"

"Augh… okay so I did see him at the party for a second, but Christmas was still kind of awkward for us after I tried to kiss him when I was drunk-"

"WHAT?! WHAT THE HELL?!"

"Oh right," she knew she forget to mention something to Rose. "When you dropped us off he brought me back to my apartment and I guess I started blabbering and he stayed behind to make sure I was okay before he left. I was still like half drunk and feeling vulnerable and I tried to kiss him, but he stopped me. That's why I think he doesn't see me that way."

"Rey, he stopped you because he's a gentleman. He respects you. He's not like Hux. He won't take advantage of a drunk woman. Especially you."

Rey deeply sighed. "Well that made things awkward for us and once again when I saw him at the party talking with Mitaka and some girl, something came over me and I forced myself to be interested in Beaumont for the night. We kissed but I didn't feel the spark… well not for him at least."

"Okay wait, I don't follow. What are you talking about?" Rose asked.

"I felt something. Like a gut feeling again. Butterflies, I guess when we were making out pretty hard. And I think I mistook them for Beaumont when really it was for Ben."

"How do you know it was for Ben and not Beau?"

"Because…"

This conversation was already a lot for Rey to handle, but this next part was the most stressful thing ever.

"Rey, spill it before I hit you," Rose was becoming very impatient with her friend. She wanted her to hurry up so she could say 'I told you so".

"Okay, okay…" She mentally prepared herself. "While Beaumont and I were making out and I was feeling all these intense emotions in me… I may have moaned Ben's name instead of his..."

Rose's jaw nearly dropped to the floor. She was speechless. That was a first.

"Rose? Hello?" Rey waved a hand in front of her face. "Girl, say something please!" She shook her friend. Rose snapped out of her paralysis and started shaking Rey instead.

"Rey, I love you, but you are an idiot! Ben is the one you're supposed to be with!"

She let go of her friend and shrugged.

"You don't know that. Sure, I can admit I have feelings for him, but he has rejected me so much in the past month more than he's ever in the past two years."

"I guess you do have to kiss a few frogs before your knight in shining armor sweeps you off your feet," Rose tried to reason.

"He's not-"

"Sweetie, I don't have time for your denial," Rose went back to her coffee and started sipping her drink again.

"I'm not in denial!"

"Rey, tell me this honestly. Does even a tiny part of you think that maybe Ben likes you just a little bit?"

"I mean… I have thought about it many times. We are awfully close."

"Then he probably does have feelings for you," Rose acknowledged. "And don't you see it, he gives you the jittery feelings. He's your spark."

"I wish he was," Rey frowned.

"Babe. HE. IS."

"It's not that simple, Rose," she said. "I or he or _we_ made it very clear from the start that we are staying friends and nothing more. I'm trying to respect that."

"Girl, respect went out the window a long time ago."

"Augh… yes I know. I've been wanting to break this friend code with him for a while," Rey said frustratingly balling her hands into fists.

"Then what the hell are you doing going out and kissing other guys when you could be kissing that tall drink of water?!"

"You're the one who told me to go out and see other men!" Rey flailed her arms at her friend.

"Yeah, before when I didn't know you loved Ben!" Rose mimicked her gesture playfully.

"Love? What? Girl, that's pushing it," Rey said coolly.

"Rey," Rose looked at her seriously. "The man went out to find you something you've wanted for so long, your favorite book. He left you a love note. How are you not seeing that he loves you?"

She had a point. But did Ben really mean it that way or were they just overthinking this simple friendly gesture?

"But… we've never been in a setting with the right moment? How could I possibly know sparks will fly?"

It was the dumbest question, Rey knew before she asked. But she was still trying to keep her feelings at bay and not get her hopes up. However, Rose was smarter and more levelheaded for the both of them. She knew her best friend, and knew how to handle this situation.

"Because when you're with the right guy, there's always going to be sparks no matter where you are or what you're doing," Rose said calmly, showing Rey she meant it. "Have you not felt butterflies around him before?"

"Honestly? All the time…" she muttered.

"Then why haven't you done anything about it?" Rose asked sincerely.

"Because I thought he didn't like me back," she shrugged.

"Oh my flipping gawwwd!" Rose picked up the book and note and shoved them into Rey's hands. "Is this enough evidence for you?! Screw the perfect setting. When it's the right guy, every moment is the perfect everything!"

Rey stared at the book and note in her hands for a long time. Rose was right, her gut was telling her the truth. It wasn't messing with her this time. She needed to trust herself.

"Y-you think I should talk to him?" she asked her friend timidly.

"Yes, oh my gosh, do you want me to drag you to him myself?!" Rose stood up and was about ready to haul her friend's ass out the door.

"No that won't be necessary."

Rey placed the book down and calmed her friend. She took a couple steps towards the door when she hesitated.

"I'm scared, Rose. What if he doesn't feel the same way?"

"I'm about two seconds from kicking you out of your own classroom, Niima."

"What if he met someone?"

"I'm pretty sure he didn't."

"What if he's not the one?"

Rey continued to delay the inevitable.

"And what if he is? Stop stalling. Stop making excuses."

Rose got up from her seat and walked Rey to the door.

"There's only one way to find out any of this. Why not take a chance with someone you actually want to take a chance with?"

Rey thought for a moment. Was Rose right? Should she take this chance? Did she want to risk her friendship with Ben for something more?

"Since when were you such a hopeless romantic?" Rey teased her best friend.

"I've always been one, sweetie. That's why I care so much for your happiness," she hugged her friend.

"Thanks, girl."

"No problem. Now go get your man!"

"Alright. I'll be right back…"

She finally walked out of the classroom. She was going to find Ben and talk to him about everything. She was going to put her heart on the line.

"I swear, I should start charging people for playing matchmaker," Rose chuckled to herself sitting back at the desk and queuing up her Netflix stream.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Preview of next chapter: It's Always Been You
> 
> "Where did you find that book?"
> 
> "It's nothing really, not that big of-"
> 
> "Just answer the question!"
> 
> "Um..."
> 
> "Do you love me, Ben?"


	11. It's Always Been You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: This is it... moment of truth time for our two lovable idiots. Btw, that first edition book cover I talked about is real. I've seen one before. It's pretty rare! [Check it out here.](http://firsteditionfantasy.blogspot.com/2012/10/first-edition-hunt-princess-bride.html)

* * *

_**XI. ~.It's Always Been You.~** _

Every single moment she had with those guys, Ben was around in one way or another. The only thing Poe, Finn, Armitage, and Beaumont had in common was that they weren't Ben. Why didn't Rey see this from the start? Was she so blind to not see that there had always been someone who saw her? There was always someone to cheer her up after a long day, a set of arms to hold her tight when she needed comfort, a welcoming smile to make her feel warm inside. And it was always Ben. _Her_ Ben. She was hoping once and for all to be _his_ Rey.

Luckily the English department building was just outside the gymnasium leading to the field, so Rey didn't have to walk too far. Sure, she could've used the extra time to calm her nerves and figure out what to say since moments earlier she was basically tongue-tied in front of Rose about all this. But somewhere between crossing the threshold from her classroom and walking down the corridor to her destination, something shifted in Rey. Suddenly she was determined to talk to Ben. No more waiting. She needed answers. She needed him.

She reached the football field and spotted the man she was looking for. This whole time he was right under her nose. This whole time her spark was also looking for her (so Rose says, which Rey was there to find out). This time she wasn't going to miss her chance with Ben. Two years was long enough.

Just watching him talking to his boys, Rey already felt that familiar jolt inside. The warmth he gave her just by being in the same room or seeing his face. The thing about Ben was that she didn't even need to kiss him to feel that spark. Rose was right, Ben was the one she had been waiting for this whole time.

"Alright fellas. This week is the championship game," Ben gathered his team in a huddle.

The boys let out a quick round of cheers.

"Yes, yes. You should be very proud of yourselves. Mitaka and I are. Therefore, seeing as this is probably the biggest game this school has ever had, I'm going to need 110% from everyone if we want to do our best and try to win this school our first division title," he was pep-talking the varsity players. "I need you guys to focus and don't let the pressure get to you. Anakin, don't overdo your arm in practice this week. We need our quarterback healthy. Luke, Obi, lead with your shoulders-"

"Not with your heads," the two boys responded jokingly.

"Good," Ben chuckled. "Now Kit, you've got to read your options before you go and slam whatever player is headed your way-"

"Uh coach?"

"What's up, Kanan?" he asked another boy on the team.

"Ms. Niima is looking at you from across the field," he shared. "She looks scary serious."

The boys all looked over their coach's shoulder and sure enough the person in question was studying him intently. Ben wasn't sure how to read her face. He had been ignoring her since Christmas and it was still hard to face her. Even when they briefly saw each other at the New Year's Eve party at Rose and Mitaka's building, he chickened out and decided against going up to her. He wasn't sure if he was ready to talk just yet. In truth, he just didn't want to face rejection. He didn't want to lose Rey completely.

"We didn't get in any trouble today, did we?" Anakin asked his teammates. Many of them were in Rey's English class. And many of them were jokesters.

"Wow you're slow, dude," Obi shoved Anakin's shoulder. "Ms. Niima isn't here for us, Ani. She's here for coach."

"What?" Ben turned his attention back to his kids momentarily. He heard a snicker coming from Mitaka as well but chose to ignore him for the moment.

"Isn't it obvious, coach? She likes you," another boy, Derek said.

"Huh?" Ben was shocked hearing these things coming from his boys.

"And coach likes her back. That's even more obvious," Luke mentioned to the group. Everyone more or less agreed with approving nods.

"Oh man," Mitaka cackled beside him. "Even the boys can see what's going on between you two. Told you to make your move, buddy," He heartily smacked Ben's shoulder.

"Can it, Mitaka," Ben grumbled at his assistant.

Before his boys or Mitaka could say anything else, they heard Rey's voice roar to life.

" _Ben Solo, I've got a bone to pick with you!_ " she hollered at him from across the field.

There was a collective gasp from the boys as Ben stood like a deer in the headlights.

"Uh-oh, she's walking over here," Kanan pointed towards their teacher. "Okay never mind she looks _angry_!"

"Oh man, what did you do, coach? Did you piss her off?" Kit asked him.

"Did you forget to buy her a Christmas present?" Derek wondered.

"Okay fellas, let's calm down with the questions alright?" Mitaka tried to shush the boys.

Rey began her stride from one end of the field to where Ben was near the fifty yard line with his huddle.

"Dude she's coming over, what are you going to do?" Mitaka asked him.

"Crap," Ben started to grow nervous by the second.

"Focus, coach. Don't let the pressure get to you!" Luke encouraged.

"Give it 110%, coach! Ms. Niima is hot!" Anakin added. The guys chuckled in agreement.

"And you should probably lead with your heart instead of your shoulders, but definitely not with your head!" Obi added jokingly.

"Okay fellas, why don't we give coach Solo and Ms. Niima some privacy alright?" Mitaka suggested.

The boys understood and immediately got up to follow their assistant coach elsewhere.

"Good luck, buddy," Mitaka patted Ben on the shoulder. Then he turned back to the team. "Let's run some of those new drills. Anakin, watch your release when you throw the ball. You're going too early, which makes it wobbly…" he managed to rustle the boys down to one end of the goal line to practice their new sets of drills.

Rey was passing the 30 yard line when he turned his attention back to her. She was getting closer and closer to him and Ben was growing more nervous by the second. When she reached him, she left merely a foot of space between them. She looked up at the tall, broodingly charming man that owned her heart square in the eyes, planting her arms on her hips, not once breaking her gaze.

"H-hey, Rey. H-how was your holiday?" Ben asked nervously.

"Where'd you find that book?" she went straight to business.

"Ah, you found the book… Good," he kicked the imaginary dirt below him (they had a turf football field).

"Ben," she said sternly.

"Huh?" he looked back up at her shyly.

"Where did you find that book?" she asked again.

He wasn't sure if he was more nervous or afraid to answer her.

"It's nothing really, not that big of-"

"Ben Solo, just answer the question!"

Okay, now he was full on terrified.

He let out a tiny sigh.

"An old family friend owns an antique shop in town. My best shot to find your book was there," he shared. "Maz is pretty cool. You two would get along actually," he rambled.

Rey continued to keep her gaze at him, softening up a bit.

"That's the nicest thing anyone has ever done or given me. Not to mention I've been looking for it my whole life."

"W-well I know how important it was for you. That's why I found it," he said softly.

"Why would you go through great lengths to find it for me?" she frowned.

"It's nothing really," he nervously scratched the back of his head. "I mean, I only went to one place. Maz has an old collection of books. I figured she was the best person to help me find the one you wanted."

"Ben, you don't understand," Rey shook her head a couple of times. "This means the world to me. Why did you do it?"

"I already said-"

"No, tell me the truth," she demanded.

"Because…" he began. He wasn't really sure if he wanted to finish that sentence. He wasn't ready for things to really change between them. He didn't want to lose her. Not any more than he's already lost her in the past month.

"Because what?" she asked. She took a couple steps closer, noticing him tense up.

"Um…"

"Do you love me, Ben?" she said abruptly.

He looked at her with wide eyes. He wasn't sure if he heard her right.

"W-what?" he was taken aback by her boldness.

"Is that it? Do you love me?" she asked him again. "Am I your grain of sand?"

"Grain of sand?" he furrowed his brows.

"It's in the book, Ben," she explained. "I'd think you'd at least read a couple pages before gifting it to me. We had a deal after all," she reminded him.

He shook his head still looking at her quizzically. He was unsure how to answer her.

"Do you love me?" she asked again taking another step closer. "Tell me. I want to know what I am to you so I can figure out what you are to me."

It was at that moment that Ben realized this was his chance. This 'two years later' chance to tell her how he felt. She was practically handing it to him. But how was she supposed to understand him if he didn't know the best way to put it? Well, he'd just have to tell her in a way she'd really understand. And he knew exactly what to do.

He met her gaze this time a bit more surely. Rey almost looked like she was smirking at him. He could have sworn by it. Maybe she knew how he felt already. Another look at her and her face softened for a second. That was all he needed to go on. So, he took a deep breath and began.

"A-are you expecting me to say that I learned languages and worked out for you?" he was half-joking, albeit still confused by her actions. Her gaze softened, this time he saw a crooked smile forming on her lips for sure. So, he timidly smiled back.

"I thought you said you didn't read the book?" she quipped an eyebrow at him.

"I might have skimmed a few pages," he finally admitted. "And I've seen the film."

"Well then you should know that if you're messing with me, I'll kill you, Ben," she half smirked at him, poking him in the chest for emphasis.

"I'm not messing with you, Rey," he said.

"Then tell me, why did you get me that book?"

He let out a deep sigh.

"Because... I only ever want you to be happy. And you love that book," he confessed. It was a start.

"Did you mean what you said? With your note."

She looked at him softly. It was the first gentle expression she gave him that morning. She was being serious, so he owed it to her to tell her the truth.

"Y-yes," he squeaked.

"And the inscription on the first page?" She knew he remembered what it meant. He had to have remembered it if he wrote it.

Ben nodded slowly. He was being cautious with his words, she knew that. But she could see it in his eyes that he was feeling the same emotions for her. It made her heart flutter. Rey softly smiled.

"You know what, I'm done playing the game."

"What?"

"Yup. I'm done."

"Why?" he wondered.

"Because it didn't work out with anyone," she shared.

"You can't just stop playing the game because you strike out a few times," Ben said. A bit of his coach side started to show. She liked that about him. He was a great motivator. Always knew what to say to cheer her up. "You just have to dust yourself off and get back out there."

She chuckled to herself, certainly adding to Ben's confusion.

"Well you see, there was a problem when I played the game," she continued.

"How so?" he was genuinely interested.

"It didn't work out with those guys because someone already has my heart," she shared.

"Really?" Ben started to feel crushed.

"Yes, really," she smiled.

"Oh…" his stare faltered.

She couldn't help but giggle at his misunderstanding of her words.

"You have it, dummy," Rey placed her hands on her hips again and tilted her head up at him. She couldn't believe he hadn't caught up to it 'til now.

Ben looked at her and hitched his breath.

"Rey, I-"

"Ben don't try to deny it. I've been trying to deny it for two years, but I never could shake this feeling. I can't work it out with any guys because my heart is telling me the only one that I want to work it out with is you."

Hearing those words he's wanted to hear for so long, Ben smiled for the first time that morning in front of Rey. His heart was swelling. Could this really be happening?

"God, Rey," he sighed. "You have no idea how long I've wanted you to say that to me. To tell me you want me too."

He was elated, almost ready to burst into tears by what was happening. Rey felt the same way. It was the best feeling ever.

"You want me too?" she bit her lip and smiled brightly.

"You have no idea," Ben chuckled. "I've wanted you for so long, I was just too scared and nervous to talk to you. I thought I missed my chance with you and then we became friends and it just got too far deep into a genuine friendship," he rambled on.

She tried her best to listen, but her heart was going crazy and beating so fast for him. She was feeling all the emotions she's always wanted to feel and was about ready to burst. Ben felt the same for her. Could this moment get any better?

"But I could never see past that and I didn't want to, frankly," he continued to speak. "I didn't date anyone else because I wanted to be with you and only you. But we were just friends. Then again I'd rather be your friend than nothing at all…"

When Ben got started, he couldn't stop talking. Not that Rey minded. He was cute when he rambled nervously.

"Then you started to date these guys and talked about having that perfect kiss and my feelings just grew more and more because I wanted to be that guy so bad. I wanted to be like Clark Gable and just grab you and kiss you and show you that no other man can make you feel this way or even feel this way for you and just have these perfect moments with you and just be with you…"

"Ben," she smiled as she spoke his name. She couldn't believe he was saying all this. God was she so happy right now.

"And yes, I read your book. Cover to cover because it's your favorite," he confessed.

"I knew it! I knew you were bluffing," she smirked in delight. "I knew you read it!"

He laughed, taking a step closer and finally diminishing the gap between them. Boldly, he placed his hands on her waist and looked deep into her eyes.

"So," his voice was a bit lower now, intending these next words to be shared between just the two of them. "If you want me to tell you 'I love you' I'll say it. I'll yell it, spell it out, say it backwards. You name it. I love you, Rey, I always have. And I-"

"Oh, just kiss me already!"

Rey placed her hands on both sides of his face and crashed her lips to his in a desperate and passionate plea. Ben immediately responded, wrapping his arms even more around her waist and pressed her against his body. She snaked her arms around his neck, deepening the kiss. He lifted her up from the ground and she popped her legs in the air, sighing blissfully into their connection. _Talk about sweeping a girl off her feet!_

There it was. The _spark_.

It was Ben.

It was _always_ Ben.

This she was sure of.

"Oh yeah! Way to go coach!" Anakin hollered from down the field.

"It's about time!" Luke chimed in.

"Go get him, Ms. Niima!" Obi cried as well.

They broke their kiss and looked over at the boys. They were all cheering, whistling and nodding in approval for their coach and favorite English lit teacher.

"Alright fellas, back to the drills," Mitaka said after he chortled at their playful behavior. He winked at Ben and Rey approvingly and got the boys to refocus once more.

Ben turned his attention back to Rey who was smiling from cheek to cheek.

"Well… that was some kiss," he said out of breath.

He placed her feet back on the ground but wasn't planning on breaking this embrace. It felt right. She was always supposed to be in his arms.

"It's you," she smiled warmly at him.

"Yeah it's me, Ben," he answered happily, albeit a bit confused.

"It's always been you," she said breathlessly.

"Okay…" he wasn't sure, but he agreed with her again.

She smiled at him some more.

"And you knew this whole time?"

He wasn't sure what she was saying now.

"Huh?"

"You knew we were supposed to be together," she simply stated.

"I mean, I knew I wanted you from the moment I met you," he confessed. It made her heart flutter.

"Honestly, I've always wanted you too. I'm sorry I took so long to tell you."

"Don't be. I was happy to wait."

She hugged him tight and sighed into his chest. She was finally happy. They both were.

"I'm just so happy that it's you."

Ben couldn't stand the confusion any longer.

"What are you talking about, Rey?" he didn't want to be rude, but he wasn't sure what she was saying exactly. "Why do you keep saying that? What am I?" he furrowed his brows.

She smiled at him again and kissed his sweet lips. Felt that electric jolt flow through her veins.

Mhm, yep.

 _Sparks_.

Ben was definitely the one.

"You're my one true love."

Eventually Rey kissed Ben in all the romantic settings she had always wanted and sure enough sparks flew each time. Kissing in the rain, it was like the cascading water was singing hymns of their love. Kissing at sunset, it was like the sky was painting them the most beautiful picture of their story. Kissing under the mistletoe was the best and only gift she wanted for Christmas. Finally, kissing her one true love at midnight to ring in the new year couldn't have been any more perfect when moments before he had gotten on one knee and proposed. The fairytales were right about one thing; nothing could compare to the magic of true love's kiss.

There have been five great kisses since 1642 B.C.- six if you count Westley and Buttercup's. When Rey kissed Ben on the football field that day… well, theirs left them all behind.

_**The End** _

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Thanks for reading! Thanks for the love with the follows, favorites and reviews. I had a lot of fun writing this little fic after I wrote Vegas. Hope you did too.
> 
> I'm taking a brief hiatus on all my accounts for now. Lots going on in my personal life and career. But I'll be back eventually. Who knows, could be tomorrow, could be next month. Stay tuned... Hope you all have a wonderful day <3
> 
> Until next time,  
> -ThoughtsInMyMind


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